ia 


BSg        ^^M&  ...____ — — — — i— jSSBfc    '    fjfl 

^^t^r  .  ^^^^^ 


UNIV.  OF  CALlF.;gef*ARY,  LOS  ANGELES 


p. 

.is, 


16  THROUGH    THE   SIKH    WAR 


r./ 

\ 


if,  indeed,  you  do  not  decide  to  follow  my  example  and  take 
service  with  one  of  the  native  princes. 

"As  far  as  taking  charge  of  you  goes,  I  am  perfectly  ready 
to  do  so — indeed  more  than  ready;  for  it  will  give  me  great 
pleasure  to  have  poor  Hugo's  son  with  me  and  to  treat  him  as 
my  own,  for  I  am  childless.  But  the  sort  of  career  I  have 
chosen  is  pretty  nearly  closed.  The  Company  have  most  of 
India  under  their  thumb,  and  allow  no  English  except  their 
own  officials  to  take  service  with  the  protected  princes.  At 
present  the  Punjaub  is  independent,  but  I  don't  think  it  can 
remain  so  much  longer.  Since  the  death  of  the  Old  Lion,  as 
Runjeet  Singh  was  called,  things  have  gone  from  bad  to  worse. 
One  ruler  after  another  has  been  set  up,  and  either  dethroned 
or  assassinated.  The  army  is  practically  master  of  the  coun- 
try; and  one  of  its  first  steps  was  to  demand  the  dismissal  of 
all  foreign  officers,  and  the  greater  part  of  us  were  accordingly 
discharged. 

"Some  of  them  left  the  country;  others,  like  myself,  are 
living  on  the  estates  granted  us  by  Runjeet  Singh,  and  on 
the  pickings,  which  were  considerable,  that  had  come  to  us 
during  our  term  of  service,  and  we  are  waiting  to  see  what 
may  be  the  next  turn  of  the  wheel.  Life  here  is  something 
like  that  of  a  baron  of  old  in  England.  My  house  is,  in  fact, 
a  fortress  perched  on  a  rock.  I  have  a  garrison  of  several 
hundred  picked  men,  and  as  I  am  a  much  easier  master  than 
most  of  these  Sikhs,  who  wring  the  last  farthing  from  the  culti- 
vators, I  could  raise  a  thousand  more  at  a  couple  of  days' 
notice.  Still  the  place  is  not  impregnable;  and  in  the  present 
disturbed  state  of  the  land,  where  there  is  practically  no  law 
save  that  of  might,  I  might  be  besieged  by  some  powerful 
Rajah,  and  in  the  event  of  the  place  being  taken  there  is  no 
doubt  what  my  fate  would  be. 

"  However,  at  present  the  great  men  are  too  intent  upon 
quarrelling  with  each  other  to  trouble  about  me,  especially  as 
they  know  that  the  place  is  not  to  be  taken  without  hard 


EASTWARD    HO  !  17 

knocks.  Moreover,  although  we  who  take  service  with  foreign 
princes  have  no  claim  whatever  for  protection  from  our  own 
countrymen,  the  fact  of  my  being  an  Englishman  is  to  some 
extent  a  safeguard.  However,  I  want  to  put  the  case  fairly 
before  you ;  and  if  you  come  out  here  I  will  do  my  best  for 
you — I  will  try  to  fill,  as  far  as  I  can,  your  father's  place.  At 
the  same  time  I  warn  you  that  the  position  here  is  a  perilous 
one,  and  that  there  is  no  predicting  how  matters  may  turn  out. 
My  own  opinion  is,  however,  that  our  people  can  never  permit 
the  state  of  things  that  prevails  here  to  go  on,  and  will  be 
forced  to  interfere  before  long.  The  Sikhs  think  that  they  are 
fully  a  match  for  us.  I  know  better.  They  are  brave,  but  so 
impatient  of  discipline,  that  although  they  look  well  enough 
on  parade  they  would  become  a  mere  mob  when  fighting  began. 

"  I  need  not  say  that  the  annexation  of  the  Punjaub  by  the 
English  would  suit  me  admirably,  but  there  will  be  a  time  of 
great  trouble  and  danger  before  that  can  be  accomplished.  I 
daresay  you  wonder  that  I  do  not  come  home,  having  made, 
as  you  may  suppose,  a  fortune  amply  sufficient  to  live  upon 
there.  But  I  do  not  think  1  shall  ever  do  that;  I  have  lived 
too  long  in  India  to  settle  down  to  English  ways.  Now  that 
your  poor  father  has  gone  I  have  not  a  single  friend  in  Eng- 
land, and  the  humdrum  life  would  kill  me  in  no  time,  after 
having  for  four-and-twenty  years  lived  in  an  atmosphere  of 
intrigue,  excitement,  and  danger. 

"Now  you  know  all  about  it,  Percy,  and  can  judge  for 
yourself.  By  the  time  you  get  this  letter  you  will  be  almost 
fifteen,  and,  as  your  father  tells  me  that  he  has  talked  the 
matter  over  with  you,  capable  of  forming  some  sort  of  an 
opinion.  As  far  as  money  goes,  do  not  let  that  influence  you 
one  way  or  the  other.  The  Old  Lion  was  one  of  the  most  ' 
liberal  of  paymasters;  and  although  one  spends  money  freely 
out  here,  I  took  care  to  transmit-a  considerable  portion  of  the 
presents  I  received  and  the  money  I  earned  to  a  firm  who  act 
as  my  agents  in  Calcutta,  so  as  to  be  in  safety  if  at  any  time  I 


PERCY   THREATENS   TO   SHOOT   THE   FERRYMEN. 


THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

A  TALE    OF 
THE   CONQUEST   OF   THE   PUNJAUB 


BY 


G.   A.    HENTY 

Author  of  "  Beric  the  Briton,"  "  The  Dash  for  Khartoum,"  "  Held  Fast  for 
England,"  "  With  Clive  in  India,"  &c. 


WITH  TWELVE  ILLUSTRATIONS  BY  HAL  HURST 
AND  MAP  OF  THE  PUNJAUB 


NEW  YORK 

CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 
1902 


COPYRIGHT,  1893,  BY 
CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS. 


r.AL IF.  LIBRARY,  LOS  ANGELES 


Stack 
Annex 

^ 


PREFACE 


MY  DEAR  LADS, 

Among  the  many  wars  by  which,  province  by  province,^" 
the  Empire  of  India  was  won,  few,  if  any,  were  more  brilliant 
and  hard  fought  than  those  which  terminated  in  the  annexa- 
tion of  the  Punjaub.  It  is  satisfactory  to  know  that  the 
conquest  of  the  Sikhs — a  brave  and  independent  race — was 
not  brought  about  by  any  of  the  intrigues  which  marred  the 
brilliancy  of  some  of  our  early  conquests,  or  by  greed  for 
additional  territory,  but  was  the  result  of  a  wanton  invasion 
of  the  states  under  our  protection  by  the  turbulent  soldiery 
of  the  Punjaub,  who  believed  themselves  invincible,  and 
embarked  upon  the  conflict  with  a  confident  belief  that  they 
would  make  themselves  masters  of  Delhi,  if  not  drive  us 
completely  out  of  India.  It  was  fortunate  for  Britain  that 
the  struggle  was  not  delayed  for  a  few  years,  and  that  there 
was  time  for  the  Punjaub  to  become  well  contented  with  our 
rule  before  the  outbreak  of  the  Mutiny;  for  had  the  Punjaub 
declared  against  us  at  that  critical  period  it  would  assuredly 
have  turned  the  scale,  and  the  work  of  conquering  India  must 
needs  have  been  undertaken  anew.  I  have  endeavoured,  while 
keeping  my  hero  well  in  the  foreground,  to  relate  the  whole 
of  the  leading  incidents  in  the  two  Sikh  wars. 
Yours  sincerely, 

G.  A.  HENTY. 


CONTENTS 

CHAP.  PAGE 

I.  EASTWARD  Ho! n 

II.  THE  SHADOW  OF  WAR 35 

IIL  Ax  THE  CASTLE 52 

IV.  A  RAID  FROM  THE  HILLS 69 

V.  RETRIBUTION      .........  86 

VI.  A  SIEGE 103 

VII.  STARTLING  NEWS 119 

VIII.  IN  THE  SERVICE 136 

IX.  MOODKEE  AND   FEROZESHAH 1 53 

X.  ALIWAL  AND  SOBRAON 170 

XI.  AN  AMBUSH       . 187 

XII.  A  PRISONER 204 

XIII.  ESCAPE 221 

XIV.  TREACHERY 238 

XV.  THE  NEWS  OF  THE  MASSACRE 256 

XVI.  SEVEN  HOURS  OF  SUSPENSE 275 

XVII.  WITH  SHER  SINGH    .        . 293 

XVIII.  REJOINING 311 

XIX.  CHILLIANWALLA  .        .               329 

XX.  GUJERAT 344 

XXI.  RETIRED 366 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

PACK 

PERCY  THREATENS  TO  SHOOT  THE  FERRYMEN.        .      Frontispiece    260 

PERCY  LEARNS  THE  PUNJAUBI  LANGUAGE 26 

PERCY  AND  HIS  UNCLE  ENTER  THE  ZENANA  .  .  .  .  .69 
PERCY  SHOOTS  THE  ASSASSIN  DURING  THE  ATTACK  ON  THE  FORTRESS  121 
THE  COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF  THANKS  PERCY  FOR  HIS  REPORT  .  .156 
PERCY  AND  HIS  FOLLOWERS  ARE  ATTACKED  BY  DACOITS  .  .  199 
PERCY  AWAKES,  TO  FIND  THAT  THE  GUARDS  ARE  VIGILANT  .  .  213 
PERCY  AND  AKRAM  ATTEMPT  TO  ESCAPE  FROM  PRISON  .  .  .  226 
"Is  HE  DEAD?"  PERCY  ASKED  AS  HE  REINED  UP  HIS  HORSE  .  249 
PERCY  is  CARRIED  OUT  OF  THE  FIGHT  WOUNDED  ....  285 
PERCY  TAKES  PART  IN  THE  BATTLE  OF  CHILLIANWALLA  .  .  338 
PERCY  HAS  AN  INTERVIEW  WITH  SHER  SINGH  ....  359 


MAP  OF  THE  PUNJAUB to  face  p.  10 


THROUGH    THE    SIKH    WAR 

A  STORY  OF  THE  CONQUEST  OF  INDIA 


CHAPTER   I 

EASTWARD   HO ! 

ROVES,  here  is  a  letter  for  you,"  Dr.  Bubear,  the 
head-master  of  a  large  school  at  Dulwich,  said,  as 
the  boys  rose  from  their  places  to  leave  the  school- 
w  room  at  the  conclusion  of  their  work.     The  lad 
addresseT,  a  boy  of  about  fifteen,  went  up  to  the  desk. 

"It  is  from  your  father's  lawyers,  Messrs.  Sims  &  Ham- 
mond. I  have  received  one  from  them  myself.  I  think  you 
will  find  it  satisfactory,"  and  he  nodded  kindly.  "You  had 
better  stop  in  here  to  read  it,  for  it  looks  somewhat  bulky, 
and  I  fancy  contains  an  inclosure." 

Percy  Groves  returned  to  his  seat,  and  did  not  open  the 
letter  until  he  was  alone  in  the  school-room.  It  was  a  long 
time  since  he  had  received  one.  Fifteen  months  before  he 
had  lost  his  father.  Major  Groves  had  returned  on  half-pay  a 
year  before  his  death,  being  obliged  to  quit  the  service  from 
the  effects  of  a  severe  wound  which  he  received  at  the  storming 
of  Ghuznee.  His  regiment  had  been  absent  several  years 
from  England,  and  after  he  had  left  the  service  and  taken  a 
house  at  Dulwich,  he  had  made  but  few  acquaintances,  spend- 
ing most  of  his  time  at  the  military  club  to  which  he  belonged. 


12  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

Percy,  who  was  an  only  child,  had  been  born  in  India — his 
mother  dying  when  he  was  five  years  old.  His  father  had 
kept  him  three  years  longer  with  him,  and  had  then  sent  him 
home  to  England  to  the  care  of  his  grandfather,  who  had, 
however,  died  a  year  later;  and  from  that  time  Percy  had 
known  no  home  but  Dr.  Bubear's,  until  his  father  returned  and 
took  up  his  residence  near  the  school.  A  few  days  before  his 
death  Major  Groves  had  a  long  talk  with  his  son. 

"I  am  troubled  about  you,  Percy,"  he  said.  "Besides  my 
half-pay  I  have  but  three  thousand  pounds — a  sum  sufficient 
indeed  to  finish  your  education,  pay  your  expenses  at  the 
University  if  you  decide  to  go  into  one  of  the  learned  profes- 
sions, and  to  help  you  a  bit  until  you  make  your  way.  I  have 
written  to  three  or  four  of  my  old  friends,  who  will,  when  the 
time  comes,  do  their  best  to  procure  you  a  commission  in  the 
army,  in  case  you  have  a  fancy  then,  as  I  know  you  have  now, 
for  soldiering.  Lastly,  there  is  my  brother.  We  have  never 
kept  up  much  correspondence,  but  we  have  always  been  good 
friends;  he  was  in  the  army  himself,  but  sold  out  after  only 
serving  a  year,  as  he  saw  that  there  was  very  little  chance  of 
active  sevice  in  Europe.  He  knocked  about  the  world  for 
some  years  and  then  went  out  to  India,  and  the  next  I  heard 
of  him  was  that  he  had  entered  the  service  of  Runjeet  Singh, 
the  leader  of  the  Sikhs,  who  had  great  respect  for  European 
troops,  and  employed  a  number  of  foreign  officers — Italian, 
German,  and  a  few  English — to  train  his  troops  on  our 
method. 

"  I  have  not  heard  of  him  for  some  three  or  four  years,  but 
when  I  did  he  was  still  in  the  Sikh  service,  and  held  the  rank 
of  colonel,  and  was,  I  heard,  high  in  favour  with  Runjeet 
Singh,  and  there  I  have  no  doubt  he  is  still,  that  is  if  he  is 
alive.  No  doubt  he  is  married  to  some  dusky  princess,  and 
has  probably  accumulated  a  fortune.  These  adventurers,  as 
Europeans  in  the  service  of  native  princes  are  generally  called, 
either  get  murdered  soon  after  they  get  out  there,  or  else 


EASTWARD    HO  !  13 

accumulate  large  fortunes.  I  have  no  doubt  that  if  he  is  alive 
he  will  take  charge  of  you. 

"The  life  is  an  adventurous  one,  and  I  do  not  say  that  I 
should  advise  you  to  adopt  it;  but  in  that  respect  you  must 
decide  for  yourself,  when  you  reach  the  age  to  do  so.  If  your 
uncle  is  able  to  push  your  fortune  out  there  you  might  do 
worse  than  stay  with  him;  if,  on  the  other  hand,  when  you  get 
to  the  age  of  seventeen  or  eighteen,  you  do  not  care  to  remain 
in  India,  you  must  come  home  and  get  the  officers  to  whom  I 
have  written  to  use  their  influence  to  obtain  a  commission  for 
you,  which  they  will,  I  have  no  doubt,  be  able  to  do,  as  the 
son  of  an  officer  forced  to  retire  from  the  service  in  conse- 
quence of  wounds  is  always  considered  to  have  a  claim. 

"  In  that  case  the  knowledge  that  you  will  obtain  of  Indian 
methods  and  languages  would  be  a  very  great  assistance  to 
you.  But  mind,  if  you  do  go  out  to  your  uncle  it  will  not  be 
possible  for  you  afterwards  to  choose  one  of  the  learned  pro- 
fessions, for  however  much  you  may  try  to  educate  yourself 
out  there,  you  will  not  be  up  to  the  mark  of  lads  who  have 
gone  through  the  regular  course  of  schooling  here." 

"I  don't  care  for  that,  father;  I  have  always  made  up  my 
mind  to  be  a  soldier,  as  you  were.  I  should  like  very  much 
to  go  out  to  my  uncle  if  he  will  have  me." 

The  major  was  silent  for  a  few  minutes. 

"I  don't  know  that  it  is  a  wise  step,"  he  murmured  to  him- 
self; "but  the  boy  has  no  friends  here — my  old  comrades  will 
do  what  they  can  for  him  when  the  time  comes,  but  until  then 
he  will  have  but  a  lonely  life. 

"Very  well,  Percy,"  he  went  on,  turning  to  his  son,  "I  will 
write  to  your  uncle.  It  may  be  eighteen  months  before  you 
get  an  answer  from  him — that  is  all  the  better.  Work  hard 
at  school,  lad,  and  learn  as  much  as  you  can,  for  you  will  get 
but  little  learning  out  there.  If  your  uncle  does  not  care  to 
have  you,  or  thinks  that  things  are  too  disturbed  and  unsettled 
out  there  for  him  to  undertake  the  responsibility,  you  must 


14  THROUGH    THE    SIKH    WAR 

fall  back  on  the  other  plan  and  remain  at  Dr.  Bubear's  until 
you  are  seventeen.  I  have  written  letters  to  the  friends  who 
promised  to  see  after  your  commission;  you  will  find  them  in 
my  desk.  Keep  them  by  you  until  you  are  leaving  school, 
and  then  post  them,  that  is  if  your  wish  to  go  into  the  army 
is  unchanged.  If  it  should  be  changed,  Messrs.  Sims  & 
Hammond,  my  lawyers,  will  put  you  in  the  way  of  carrying 
out  your  wishes  in  whatever  direction  they  may  lie." 

There  had  been  several  such  talks  between  father  and  son, 
and  Percy  knew  that  he  should  not  have  his  father  long  with 
him.  He  listened,  therefore,  gravely  to  his  words,  but  with- 
out showing  emotion;  for  although  when  alone  he  often  gave 
way  to  tears,  he  knew  that  the  major,  himself  a  quiet  and 
self-restrained  man,  was  adverse  to  any  display  of  feeling. 
The  boy  did  not  think  the  end  was  so  near,  and  though  pre- 
pared in  some  way  for  the  blow,  it  was  a  terrible  shock  to 
him  when  his  father,  five  days  later,  expired.  He  had  again 
become  a  boarder  at  Dr.  Bubear's,  remaining  there  during  the 
holidays  as  well  as  in  school-time. 

Two  or  three  times  old  friends  of  his  father  had  come  to 
see  him,  and  had  taken  him  out  for  the  day.  This  was  the 
only  change  he  had  had,  but  he  had  worked  hard  and  risen 
considerably  in  his  place  in  the  school.  In  accordance  with 
instructions  from  Messrs.  Sims  &  Hammond  he  had  gone 
regularly  to  a  riding-school,  as  the  major,  knowing  the  Sikhs 
to  be  a  nation  of  horsemen,  had  thought  it  desirable  that  he 
should  learn  to  have  a  good  seat  on  a  horse.  The  lawyers  had 
also  arranged  that  he  should  twice  a  week  have  lessons  in 
Hindustani,  and  he  was  allowed  to  work  at  this  instead  of 
Greek.  His  progress  was  comparatively  rapid,  as  after  a  time 
the  language  he  had  heard  spoken  for  the  first  eight  years  of 
his  life  came  back  to  him  rapidly.  He  had  hardly  begun  to 
look  for  a  reply  from  his  uncle  when  Dr.  Bubear  handed  him 
the  letter,  which  he  doubted  not  contained  the  answer.  He 
had  hardly  hoped  that  it  would  be  favourable,  for  during  the 


EASTWARD    HO  !  15 

intervening  time  he  had  learned  something  of  what  was  going 
on  in  the  Punjaub,  and  knew  that  since  Runjeet  Singh's  death 
there  had  been  many  troubles  there,  and  that  things  were  in  a 
very  unsettled  state. 

This  information  he  had  received  from  one  of  the  boys 
whose  father  was  a  director  of  the  East  India  Company.  The 
doctor's  words,  however,  gave  him  some  hope,  and  when  alone 
he  opened  the  letter  with  less  trepidation  than  he  would  other- 
wise have  felt.  Messrs.  Sims  &  Hammond  wrote  as  fol- 
lows : — 

"We  have  pleasure  in  forwarding  to  you  a  communication 
from  Colonel  Roland  Groves,  which  was  inclosed  in  one  sent 
to  us.  In  the  latter  he  expressed  his  readiness  to  receive  you, 
while  pointing  out  that  the  position  of  affairs  in  the  Punjaub 
was  unsettled  in  the  extreme.  He  doubtless  speaks  further 
of  this  in  his  letter  to  you.  As  our  late  client,  your  father, 
instructed  us  that  we  were  to  be  guided  entirely  by  your 
decision  in  the  matter,  we  leave  it  in  your  hands,  observing, 
however,  that  in  the  face  of  your  uncle's  statements  with  regard 
to  the  country,  it  appears  to  us  that  to  go  out  to  him  at  present 
would  be  an  exceedingly  ill-advised  and  rash  step.  Should 
you,  however,  decide  upon  doing  so,  we  will,  upon  hearing 
from  you,  take  the  necessary  steps  for  obtaining  your  outfit 
and  securing  your  berth.  A  client  of  ours  in  Calcutta  will, 
we  doubt  not,  arrange  on  your  arrival  there  for  forwarding  you 
up  the  country  to  your  uncle." 

Having  read  this,  Percy  broke  the  seal  of  the  inclosure  and 
read  as  follows : — 

"Mv  DEAR  NEPHEW, — I  am  filled  with  grief  to  learn  from 
a  letter,  forwarded  to  me  after  his  death,  that  your  father  is  no 
more.  It  is  many  years  since  I  saw  him;  but  we  were  always 
capital  friends,  though  as  unlike  in  disposition  as  two  brothers 
could  be.  He  tells  me  that  he  has  no  friends  in  England  in 
whose  charge  he  could  place  you,  and  asks  if  I  will  have  you 
out  with  me  until  you  are  of  an  age  to  enter  the  army  at  home, 


THROUGH    THE   SIKH    WAR 

if,  indeed,  you  do  not  decide  to  follow  my  example  and  take 
service  with  one  of  the  native  princes. 

"As  far  as  taking  charge  of  you  goes,  I  am  perfectly  ready 
to  do  so — indeed  more  than  ready;  for  it  will  give  me  great 
pleasure  to  have  poor  Hugo's  son  with  me  and  to  treat  him  as 
my  own,  for  I  am  childless.  But  the  sort  of  career  I  have 
chosen  is  pretty  nearly  closed.  The  Company  have  most  of 
India  under  their  thumb,  and  allow  no  English  except  their 
own  officials  to  take  service  with  the  protected  princes.  At 
present  the  Punjaub  is  independent,  but  I  don't  think  it  can 
remain  so  much  longer.  Since  the  death  of  the  Old  Lion,  as 
Runjeet  Singh  was  called,  things  have  gone  from  bad  to  worse. 
One  ruler  after  another  has  been  set  up,  and  either  dethroned 
or  assassinated.  The  army  is  practically  master  of  the  coun- 
try; and  one  of  its  first  steps  was  to  demand  the  dismissal  of 
all  foreign  officers,  and  the  greater  part  of  us  were  accordingly 
discharged. 

"Some  of  them  left  the  country;  others,  like  myself,  are 
living  on  the  estates  granted  us  by  Runjeet  Singh,  and  on 
the  pickings,  which  were  considerable,  that  had  come  to  us 
during  our  term  of  service,  and  we  are  waiting  to  see  what 
may  be  the  next  turn  of  the  wheel.  Life  here  is  something 
like  that  of  a  baron  of  old  in  England.  My  house  is,  in  fact, 
a  fortress  perched  on  a  rock.  I  have  a  garrison  of  several 
hundred  picked  men,  and  as  I  am  a  much  easier  master  than 
most  of  these  Sikhs,  who  wring  the  last  farthing  from  the  culti- 
vators, I  could  raise  a  thousand  more  at  a  couple  of  days' 
notice.  Still  the  place  is  not  impregnable;  and  in  the  present 
disturbed  state  of  the  land,  where  there  is  practically  no  law 
save  that  of  might,  I  might  be  besieged  by  some  powerful 
Rajah,  and  in  the  event  of  the  place  being  taken  there  is  no 
doubt  what  my  fate  would  be. 

"  However,  at  present  the  great  men  are  too  intent  upon 
quarrelling  with  each  other  to  trouble  about  me,  especially  as 
they  know  that  the  place  is  not  to  be  taken  without  hard 


EASTWARD   HO  !  17 

knocks.  Moreover,  although  we  who  take  service  with  foreign 
princes  have  no  claim  whatever  for  protection  from  our  own 
countrymen,  the  fact  of  my  being  an  Englishman  is  to  some 
extent  a  safeguard.  However,  I  want  to  put  the  case  fairly 
before  you ;  and  if  you  come  out  here  I  will  do  my  best  for 
you — I  will  try  to  fill,  as  far  as  I  can,  your  father's  place.  At 
the  same  time  I  warn  you  that  the  position  here  is  a  perilous 
one,  and  that  there  is  no  predicting  how  matters  may  turn  out. 
My  own  opinion  is,  however,  that  our  people  can  never  permit 
the  state  of  things  that  prevails  here  to  go  on,  and  will  be 
forced  to  interfere  before  long.  The  Sikhs  think  that  they  are 
fully  a  match  for  us.  I  know  better.  They  are  brave,  but  so 
impatient  of  discipline,  that  although  they  look  well  enough 
on  parade  they  would  become  a  mere  mob  when  fighting  began. 

"  I  need  not  say  that  the  annexation  of  the  Punjaub  by  the 
English  would  suit  me  admirably,  but  there  will  be  a  time  of 
great  trouble  and  danger  before  that  can  be  accomplished.  I 
daresay  you  wonder  that  I  do  not  come  home,  having  made, 
as  you  may  suppose,  a  fortune  amply  sufficient  to  live  upon 
there.  But  I  do  not  think  1  shall  ever  do  that;  I  have  lived 
too  long  in  India  to  settle  down  to  English  ways.  Now  that 
your  poor  father  has  gone  I  have  not  a  single  friend  in  Eng- 
land, and  the  humdrum  life  would  kill  me  in  no  time,  after 
having  for  four-and-twenty  years  lived  in  an  atmosphere  of 
intrigue,  excitement,  and  danger. 

"Now  you  know  all  about  it,  Percy,  and  can  judge  for 
yourself.  By  the  time  you  get  this  letter  you  will  be  almost 
fifteen,  and,  as  your  father  tells  me  that  he  has  talked  the 
matter  over  with  you,  capable  of  forming  some  sort  of  an 
opinion.  As  far  as  money  goes,  do  not  let  that  influence  you 
one  way  or  the  other.  The  Old  Lion  was  one  of  the  most 
liberal  of  paymasters;  and  although  one  spends  money  freely 
out  here,  I  took  care  to  transmits  considerable  portion  of  the 
presents  I  received  and  the  money  I  earned  to  a  firm  who  act 
as  my  agents  in  Calcutta,  so  as  to  be  in  safety  if  at  any  time  I 


THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 


r 


had  to  make  a  bolt  of  it.  That  money  will  some  day  be  yours 
whether  you  come  out  to  me  or  not,  for  I  have  no  one  else  to 
leave  it  to;  and  I  am,  by  the  same  messenger  who  carries  this 
letter  to  the  British  agent  at  Loodiana,  sending  instructions  to 
my  agents  that  in  case  of  anything  happening  to  me,  the  money 
is  to  be  transferred  to  your  name,  and  they  are  to  communi- 
cate with  the  firm  who  are,  as  your  father  tells  me,  his  lawyers 
in  London. 

"I  don't  know  whether  I  am  acting  altogether  wisely  in 
agreeing  to  your  coming  out;  and  I  certainly  should  not  have 
done  so  if  it  had  not  been  that  your  father,  who  must  have 
been  perfectly  aware  of  the  disturbed  state  of  this  country, 
evidently  wished  that  it  should  be  so.  Well,  if  the  life  has 
its  dangers,  it  has  its  advantages.  In  our  army  at  home  an 
officer  is  but  one  bit  of  a  great  machine;  his  life  is  a  routine, 
and  in  peace  time  as  dull  as  ditch-water.  Here  a  man  has,  every 
day  and  every  hour,  need  of  his  brains,  his  courage,  quickness, 
and  spirit.  In  war-time  we  fight  the  enemies  of  the  Mahara- 
jah; in  peace  we  have  to  combat  the  intrigues  of  our  enemies 
and  rivals,  to  guard  against  the  dangers  of  assassination,  to 
countermine  the  approaches  of  the  enemy,  to  be  ready  for 
instant  flight,  or  sudden  favour  and  promotion. 

"It  is  a  man's  life,  Percy,  and  to  a  man  of  spirit  worth  a 
hundred  existences  at  home.  If  I  knew  you  personally  I  could 
form  a  better  idea  as  to  whether  I  ought  to  say  to  you,  stay 
where  you  are,  or,  come  here.  Your  father  says  that  he  thinks 
you  have  a  fair  share  of  pluck  and  determination,  and  that  he 
considers  you  to  be  as  sharp  and  shrewd  as  most  boys  of  your 
age.  As  he  was  the  last  man  in  the  world  to  speak  one  word 
beyond  what  he  considered  due,  I  take  it  that  his  estimate  of 
your  character  is  in  no  way  too  flattering. 

"  Think  it  over  yourself,  Percy.  Can  you  thrash  most  fel- 
lows your  own  age  ?  Can  you  run  as  far  and  as  fast  as  most  of 
them?  Can  you  take  a  caning  without  whimpering  over  it? 
Do  you  feel,  in  fact,  that  you  are  able  to  go  through  fully  as 


EASTWARD    HO  !  19 

much  as  any  of  your  companions?  Are  you  good  at  planning 
a  piece  of  mischief,  and  ready  to  take  the  lead  in  carrying  it 
out?  For  though  such  gifts  as  these  do  not  recommend  a 
boy  to  the  favour  of  his  schoolmaster,  they  are  worth  more  out 
here  than  a  knowledge  of  all  the  dead  languages.  It  is  pluck 
and  endurance,  and  a  downright  love  of  adventure  and  danger, 
that  have  made  us  the  masters  of  the  greater  part  of  India,  and 
will  ere  long  make  us  rulers  of  the  whole  of  it:  and  it  is  of  no 
use  anyone  coming  out  here,  especially  to  take  service  with 
one  of  the  native  princes,  unless  he  is  disposed  to  love  danger 
for  its  own  sake,  and  to  feel  that  he  is  willing  and  ready  to 
meet  it  from  whatever  quarter  it  may  come.  However,  there 
is  no  occasion  for  you  to  make  up  your  mind  at  present  upon 
more  than  the  point  whether  you  will  come  out  to  me  for  three 
or  four  years ;  when  it  will  be  time  enough  to  make  your  final 
decision.  In  any  case  you  may  always  consider  me  your 
affectionate  uncle,  ROLAND." 

Percy  read  the  letter  through  very  carefully,  ft  was  some- 
thing like  what  he  had  expected,  for  his  father  had  in  his  last 
days  spoken  much  to  him  of  his  brother. 

"He  was  cut  out  for  the  life  he  has  led,  Percy,"  he  had  said 
to  him.  "  He  was  the  leader  in  all  mischief  at  school ;  he  had 
any  amount  of  energy  and  life.  He  would  not  have  made  a 
good  officer  in  the  king's  service;  for  he  was  impatient  of 
authority,  and  would  have  been  at  loggerheads  with  the  adju- 
tant, and  perhaps  with  the  colonel,  in  no  time.  Once  he  set 
his  mind  to  do  a  thing  he  would  do  it,  whatever  it  was;  and 
his  straightforwardness  and  loyal  nature  would  certainly  win 
for  him  the  confidence  of  any  of  these  Indian  princes,  accus- 
tomed as  they  are  to  being  surrounded  with  intriguers  ready 
at  all  times  to  take  sides  with  the  most  powerful,  and  to  sell 
themselves  to  the  highest  bidder.  He  will  tell  you  frankly 
whether  he  thinks  you  had  better  come  out  to  him  or  stay  at 
home.  But  mind,  if  you  do  go  out  he  will  expect  a  good  deal 
of  you,  and  if  you  don't  do  credit  to  him  as  well  as  to  your- 


20  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

self,  he  will  have  no  hesitation  in  packing  you  off  home  again 
at  an  hour's  notice." 

Percy  was  pleased  to  see  that,  although  he  warned  him  of 
the  difficulties  and  dangers  of  the  position,  his  uncle  clearly 
did  wish  him  to  come  out  to  him,  and  he  had  no  hesitation 
whatever  in  making  his  decision.  After  reading  the  letter  for 
the  third  time,  he  placed  it  in  his  pocket  and  went  across  to 
the  doctor's. 

"I  expected  you,  Groves,"  the  latter  said,  when  he  was 
shown  into  his  study.  "  So  your  uncle  is  willing  to  receive 
you,  but  leaves  the  choice  entirely  to  yourself.  That  is  what 
Messrs.  Sims  &  Hammond  said  in  their  letter  to  me.  Evi- 
dently they  think  it  a  very  foolish  business,  but  say  that  as  they 
are  bound  by  their  instructions  they  have  only  to  carry  them 
out  if  you  decide  to  go,  but  they  hope  that  I  shall  use  my 
influence  to  induce  you  to  decide  upon  remaining  here.  I 
have  no  intention  of  doing  so.  It  was  for  your  father  to  make 
his  choice,  and  he  made  it.  He  knows  the  country  and  he 
knows  your  uncle's  character,  and  as  he  thought  the  opening  a 
good  one  for  you,  I  do  not  feel  that  it  lies  within  my  province 
to  influence  your  decision  in  any  way.  I  need  hardly  ask  what 
the  decision  is.  I  know  that  you  have  been  looking  forward 
to  the  receipt  of  this  letter,  and  the  ardour  with  which  you 
have  worked  at  Hindustani,  as  your  master  tells  me,  shows  that 
your  wishes  lay  in  that  direction.  So  you  have  made  up  your 
mind  to  go?" 

"  Yes,  sir.  My  uncle  does  not  try  to  persuade  me  to  come, 
but  he  says  that  he  will  be  very  glad  to  have  me  with  him. 
He  lives  in  a  fortified  castle  with  a  lot  of  retainers,  like  a 
feudal  baron,  he  says." 

"Then  I  am  quite  sure  no  more  need  be  said,"  the  doctor 
replied  smiling;  "I  don't  think  any  boy  could  withstand  the 
prospect  of  living  in  a  fortified  castle.  And  now  I  suppose 
you  want  to  go  and  see  the  solicitors?  " 

"If  you  please,  sir." 


EASTWARD    HO  !  21 

"Very  well.  I  will  give  you  leave  off  school  this  afternoon. 
If  you  find  that  there  is  a  ship  sailing  shortly  you  will  have 
many  preparations  to  make,  and  as  I  am  quite  sure  your 
thoughts  will  be  too  occupied  to  think  of  lessons  you  may 
consider  them  at  an  end.  If,  however,  you  find  it  will  be 
some  little  time  before  you  are  able  to  sail,  I  shall  expect  you 
to  put  the  matter  altogether  out  of  your  head  until  the  time 
approaches,  and  to  work  as  hard  as  you  can;  though  we  will 
give  up  Latin,  and  you  can  devote  yourself  entirely  to  Hindu- 
stani. Let  me  see  you  when  you  return  from  the  lawyer's. 
You  know  the  way  to  London  Bridge.  You  cross  that,  and 
anyone  you  meet  will  then  direct  you  to  Fenchurch  Street. 
You  had  better  have  your  dinner  before  you  start." 

Messrs.  Sims  &  Hammond  did  not  conceal  from  Percy  their 
opinion  that  his  decision  to  go  out  to  join  his  uncle  savoured 
of  lunacy.  "We  are  willing  to  carry  out  your  father's  instruc- 
tions," the  senior  partner  said,  shrugging  his  shoulders.  "We 
considered  it  our  duty  to  express  our  opinion  frankly  on  the 
subject  to  him.  Having  done  that  without  avail,  our  duty  in 
the  matter  is  at  an  end.  We  find  it  a  not  unusual  thing  for 
our  clients  to  prefer  their  own  opinions  to  ours,  not  unfre- 
quently  to  their  own  cost.  Since  we  have  received  your 
uncle's  communication  yesterday,  we  have  made  inquiries  as 
to  the  vessels  loading  for  Calcutta,  and  find  that  the  India- 
man  the  Deccan  will  sail  in  ten  days'  time.  That  will,  I  take 
it,  be  sufficient  time  for  you  to  make  your  preparations.  One 
of  our  clerks  will  at  once  go  with  you  to  take  your  berth,  and 
then  accompany  you  to  some  outfitter's  to  get  all  that  is 
requisite.  Your  father  left  with  us  a  list  of  the  clothing  and 
other  matters  he  considered  would  be  required  in  the  event  of 
your  going." 

Five  minutes  later  Percy  set  out  in  charge  of  an  elderly 
clerk,  and  by  the  close  of  the  afternoon  the  passage  was  taken 
and  the  whole  of  the  outfit  ordered,  and  Percy  walked  back  to 
Dulwich  quite  overwhelmed  at  the  extent  of  the  wardrobe  that 


22  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

his  father  had  deemed  necessary  for  him  for  the  voyage. 
Several  suits  of  clothes  had,  in  accordance  with  the  instruc- 
tions on  the  list,  been  ordered,  of  a  size  considerably  too  large 
for  him  at  present.  Major  Groves  had  appended  a  note  to 
the  list,  saying  that  he  did  not  consider  it  necessary  that  a  large 
stock  of  such  clothes  should  be  provided,  as  there  would  be  no 
difficulty  in  having  them  made  in  India,  and  that,  moreover, 
Percy  would  probably,  to  some  extent,  wear  native  attire. 

The  ten  days  passed  rapidly.  Percy,  although  nominally 
free  from  the  school-room,  nevertheless  worked  with  ardour 
at  his  Hindustani. 

"You  have  made  great  progress,  Groves,"  his  teacher  said 
on  the  last  day.  "  I  should  advise  you  strongly  to  work  several 
hours  a  day  at  it  during  the  voyage.  Some  of  the  passengers 
who  are  returning  to  India  are  sure  to  have  with  them  native 
servants  and  ayahs,  and  you  had  best  take  every  opportunity  of 
speaking  with  them.  You  must  remember  that  there  are  a 
large  number  of  dialects,  and  even  of  distinct  languages,  in 
India;  and  it  is  probable  that  you  will  find  your  Hindustani 
of  little  use  to  you  in  Northern  India.  Still,  it  will  greatly 
facilitate  your  learning  the  other  languages,  and  most  of  the 
educated  natives  understand  it,  as,  like  French  on  the  Conti- 
nent, it  is  the  general  medium  of  communication  between  the 
natives  of  different  parts  of  the  country.  Possibly  you  may 
find  among  the  servants  on  board  a  native  of  Northern  India, 
and  may  be  able  to  commence  your  study  of  Punjaubi  with 
him." 

Two  days  before  the  vessel  sailed  Percy  went  by  appointment 
to  the  lawyer's  office,  and  Mr.  Hammond  took  him  to  the 
shipping  office  and  introduced  him  to  the  captain  of  the 
Dec  can. . 

"  I  will  give  an  eye  to  the  lad  as  far  as  I  can,  Mr.  Ham- 
mond," Captain  Grierson  said;  "though,  to  tell  you  the  truth, 
I  would  almost  as  lief  have  a  monkey  as  a  boy  to  look  after. 
Still  1  don't  feel  the  responsibility  as  great  as  that  of  my  young 


EASTWARD    HO  !  23 

lady  passengers.  Do  what  I  may,  they  will  indulge  in  flirta- 
tion, and  I  have  to  bear  the  brunt  of  the  anger  of  the  relatives 
to  whom  they  are  consigned  in  India,  when  they  discover  that 
my  charges  have  already  disposed  of  themselves  on  the 
voyage." 

During  those  last  days  Percy  was  the  object  of  the  greatest 
envy  and  admiration  of  his  school-fellows.  To  be  going  all 
the  way  out  to  India  by  himself  was  in  itself  splendid;  but  the 
idea  that  he  was  to  live  in  a  castle  with  armed  retainers,  and 
the  possibility  of  a  siege  and  all  other  sorts  of  unknown  dangers, 
seemed  almost  too  great  a  stroke  of  good  fortune  to  fall  to  the 
lot  of  anybody.  Most  of  his  effects  had  been  sent  direct  on 
board  the  Deccan,  but  he  had  obtained  from  the  store  where 
they  had  been  deposited,  the  cases  containing  his  father's  rifles, 
double-barrelled  gun  and  pistols,  and  the  fact  that  he  was  the 
possessor  of  such  arms  greatly  heightened  the  admiration  of 
his  companions. 

But  even  the  knowledge  that  the  pistols  were  in  his  cabin, 
and  the  other  arms  stowed  below  with  the  greater  portion  of 
his  belongings,  scarcely  sufficed  to  keep  up  his  spirits  as  he 
stood,  a  solitary  and  rather  forlorn  boy,  on  the  deck  of  the 
great  ship  as  she  warped  out  through  the  dock-gates. 

The  doctor  had  come  down  early  to  see  him  on  board,  but 
had  been  obliged  to  return  at  once  to  his  duties  at  the  school, 
and  everyone  but  himself  seemed  to  have  friends  to  see  them 
off.  The  entrance  to  the  docks  was  crowded  with  people  wav- 
ing their  handkerchiefs  and  shouting  adieux  to  those  on  board, 
while  many  who  were  to  land  at  Gravesend  were  on  deck  chat- 
ting with  their  friends.  The  captain  stopped  good-naturedly 
by  his  side  for  a  moment  as  he  passed  along. 

"All  alone,  Groves,  eh?  You  will  soon  make  friends,  and 
I  think  you  are  really  better  off  than  those  who  haven't  got  over 
saying  their  last  good-byes  yet.  I  always  think  it  is  much 
better  to  finish  all  that  sort  of  thing  at  home,  instead  of  pro- 
longing the  pain.  Here,  Harcourt,"  he  called  to  a  young 


24  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

fellow  about  sixteen,  in  a  midshipman's  dress,  "you  haven't 
anything  to  do  just  at  present.  Give  an  eye  to  this  youngster; 
he  is  going  out  to  join  an  uncle  in  India,  and  is  all  alone  on 
board.  Introduce  him  to  the  other  midshipmen  when  you  get 
an  opportunity.  I  have  told  the  steward  to  mess  him  with 
you;  he  will  be  much  more  comfortable  there  than  he  would 
be  with  the  people  in  the  cabin  aft.  You  will  like  that  arrange- 
ment, won't  you,  Groves?  " 

"Very  much  indeed,  sir,"  Percy  said,  feeling  as  if  a  great 
load  had  been  lifted  off  his  mind.  Harcourt  led  him  down 
between  decks  to  the  ward-room,  as  they  called  it,  where  the 
third  and  fourth  officers  and  the  four  midshipmen  messed. 

"This  is  our  palace,  Groves.  A  bit  of  a  hole  in  compari- 
son with  the  saloon,  but  a  snug  little  den,  too,  when  everything 
is  going  on  well  and  everyone  is  in  good  temper.  I  will  tell 
the  others  that  the  skipper  has  made  you  free  of  it.  The  third 
and  fourth  officers  are  both  good  fellows,  and  I  think  you  will 
find  it  comfortable.  If  you  don't,  you  have  got  the  saloon  to 
fall  back  upon." 

"I  am  sure  to  find  it  comfortable,"  Percy  said  confidently. 
"  I  have  come  fresh  from  school,  you  know,  and  am  not  ac- 
customed to  luxuries;  I  should  find  it  miserable  among  all 
those  grown-up  people.  I  only  wish  I  was  going  out  as  a 
midshipman  instead  of  a  passenger,  so  as  to  have  something 
to  do." 

"  Ah,  well,  you  can  talk  to  the  skipper  about  that.  Perhaps 
he  will  put  you  on  a  watch  if  you  ask  him.  I  don't  say  the 
work  is  very  lively,  for  it  isn't;  but  I  know  that  I  should  be 
very  sorry  to  have  to  make  the  voyage  with  nothing  to  do  but 
walk  about  with  my  hands  in  my  pockets.  However,  I  must 
go  on  deck  now.  We  had  our  breakfast  long  ago;  we  dine  at 
two  bells,  that  is  one  o'clock.  If  you  can't  hold  on  until  then 
I  will  get  our  steward  to  bring  you  a  biscuit." 

"  I  can  hold  on  very  well.  I  had  a  cup  of  tea  and  something 
to  eat  before  I  left." 


EASTWARD   HO  !  25 

Percy  followed  Harcourt  on  deck  again,  and  feeling  now 
more  settled  as  to  his  position,  was  able  to  look  on  with  inter- 
est and  pleasure  at  what  was  being  done  around  him.  The 
passengers  had  settled  themselves  a  little;  some  had  got  out 
their  chairs,  and  were  seated  chatting  in  groups,  but  the  ladies 
for  the  most  part  were  below  arranging  their  cabins.  Men  in 
couples  walked  up  and  down  the  waist  smoking,  or  leaned 
against  the  bulwarks  discussing  the  voyage  and  their  mutual 
acquaintances.  Most  of  the  sails  had  now  been  set,  for  the 
wind  was  favourable,  and  the  great  ship  was  running  fast  down 
the  river  and  was  just  passing  Woolwich.  A  sailor,  bare- 
footed and  with  his  trousers  turned  up  to  his  knees,  was  sluic- 
ing the  decks  with  water.  Others  were  coiling  up  ropes. 
Others  again,  dressed  more  in  accordance  with  Percy's  ideas 
as  to  the  neatness  of  a  sailor's  costume,  were  standing  at  the 
sheets  and  braces  in  readiness  to  trim  the  sails  to  port  or  star- 
board, as  the  sharp  turns  of  the  river  brought  the  wind  on  one 
quarter  or  the  other. 

Percy  was  surprised  at  the  silence  that  reigned  among  so 
many  men,  but  he  understood  the  reason  when  the  sharp  orders 
were  shouted  from  the  quarter-deck  where  the  first  officer  was 
standing  by  the  side  of  the  pilot.  Then  there  was  a  hauling 
of  ropes  and  a  creaking  of  blocks,  and  the  towering  pile  of 
yards  and  sails  swung  over.  Now  and  then  the  ship's  course 
was  suddenly  changed  to  avoid  some  barge  or  smaller  craft  that 
got  in  her  way,  sometimes  missing  by  the  smallest  margin 
running  them  down.  On  one  or  two  of  these  occasions  a  mate 
shouted  angrily  down  at  those  in  charge  of  these  craft,  and 
these  shouted  as  angrily  back  again.  Once  past  Erith  the 
river  widened  and  the  dangers  of  collision  ceased,  for  the 
craft  were  all  proceeding  in  the  same  direction;  for  the  stream 
was  now  running  too  strongly  for  the  barges  to  attempt  to  make 
their  way  against  it,  even  by  hugging  the  shore  and  keeping  in 
back  waters.  At  twelve  o'clock  the  luncheon  bell  rang,  and 
the  passengers  disappeared  from  deck.  But  Percy  was  -so 


26 


THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 


absorbed  in  watching  the  shore  that  he  was  quite  surprised 
when  Harcourt  touched  him  on  the  shoulder  and  said : 

"There  are  two  bells,  youngster.  You  must  keep  your  ears 
open  or  you  will  be  missing  your  meals;  for  they  do  not  ring 
for  us,  and  anyone  who  does  not  turn  up  to  his  grub  goes  with- 
out it." 

The  voyage  was  a  very  pleasant  one  to  Percy  Groves.  The 
captain  did  not  allow  him  to  act  as  a  volunteer  midshipman; 
but  it  was  not  long  before  he  ceased  to  regret  this  decision,  for 
he  found  among  the  four  or  five  native  servants  returning  to 
India  with  their  masters  one  from  the  Punjaub.  The  man's 
duties  on  board  occupied  but  a  very  small  portion  of  his  time, 
as  he  had  little  to  do  except  wait  on  his  master  at  meals;  and 
he  was  very  glad  to  arrange,  for  what  seemed  to  Percy  a  ridicu- 
lously small  sum,  to  spend  five  or  six  hours  a  day  in  conversa- 
tion with  him.  Accordingly,  after  breakfast  and  dinner  the 
two  took  seats  up  in  the  bow,  Percy  on  a  low  stool,  the  native 
squatted  beside  him,  and  there  spent  hours,  at  first  in  learning 
the  Punjaubi  equivalents  for  Hindustani  words,  and  then,  as 
time  went  on,  in  conversation. 

The  native  knew  a  little  Hindustani,  and  could  get  on  fairly 
in  English,  so  that  they  were  able  from  the  first  to  compre- 
hend each  other;  and  as  Percy's  former  studies  helped  him 
materially,  he  picked  up  Punjaubi  quickly,  and  by  the  end  of 
the  voyage  was  able  to  express  himself  in  it  with  considerable 
freedom.  He  was  always  up  early  in  the  morning,  and  until 
breakfast-time  chatted  with  any  officers  or  midshipmen  off  duty, 
and  sometimes  with  the  early  risers  among  the  passengers — 
two  or  three  of  whom,  when  they  found  that  the  lad  was  a  first- 
class  passenger  on  his  way  out  to  India  to  join  an  uncle, 
became  very  friendly  with  him,  being  struck  with  the  steady 
way  in  which  he  passed  the  greater  portion  of  the  day  in 
preparing  himself,  as  far  as  possible,  for  the  life  he  was  about 
to  lead. 

"Why  don't  you  come  aft,  Groves?"  one  of  them  asked 
him. 


VKKCY    LEARNS    THE   PUNJAUBI    LANGUAGE, 


EASTWARD   HO  !  27 

"  I  should  feel  altogether  strange,  sir.  The  two  officers  and 
the  midshipmen  are  all  very  kind  and  friendly,  and  we  live 
very  well  there,  and  I  feel  much  more  at  home  than  I  should 
do  with  the  ladies.  I  have  not  been  accustomed  to  ladies. 
I  do  not  remember  my  mother,  and  for  years  I  lived  altogether 
at  school.  After  my  father  came  back,  and  I  lived  at  home 
with  him,  only  gentlemen  came  to  the  house.  I  like  it  all 
very  much,  and  should  not  like  to  change.  Besides,  if  I  got 
to  know  a  good  many  passengers,  I  might  not  be  able  to  spend 
so  much  time  in  work;  and  I  do  so  want  when  I  join  my  uncle 
to  be  able  to  be  useful  to  him,  which  I  could  not  be  if  I  did 
not  know  anything  of  the  language." 

"  Well,  I  am  sure,  Groves,  your  uncle  ought  to  be  pleased 
when  you  join  him  to  know  how  hard  you  have  worked.  It 
would  be  a  very  good  thing  if  every  young  cadet  and  writer 
who  went  out  would  do  as  you  do,  and  prepare  himself  for  his 
work  out  there,  instead  of  wasting  six  months  in  lounging 
about,  trying  to  make  himself  agreeable  to  the  women  on 
board.  He  would  not  only  find  it  very  useful  out  there,  but 
he  would  find  it  very  profitable.  For  a  young  fellow  who,  on 
arrival,  was  able  to  speak  one  of  the  languages  pretty  fluently, 
would  be  certain  to  attract  the  notice  of  the  authorities,  and 
would  find  himself  in  a  responsible  and  well-paid  berth,  while 
the  others  were  kept  at  desks  in  Calcutta  or  Bombay,  or  sent 
out  as  assistants  to  unimportant  posts. 

"  It  is  my  servant  who  is  teaching  you,  and  he  tells  me  that 
you  are  making  wonderful  progress,  and  that  you  already  know 
as  much  of  the  language  as  many  officers  who  have  been  in 
India  for  years.  I  can  tell  you,  too,  that  you  could  not  have 
taken  up  a  more  useful  dialect  than  Punjaubi.  At  present,  of 
course,  the  Punjaub  is  independent,  and  the  consequence  is 
there  are  very  few  officials  who  have  taken  the  trouble  to  learn 
the  language ;  but  no  one  doubts  that-  the  time  is  not  very  far 
distant  when  we  shall  have  to  interfere  there,  and  in  a  few 
years  we  may  have  to  take  it  over  altogether. 


28  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

need  hardly  say  that  there  will  be  a  great  demand  for  officials 
able  to  speak  the  language ;  and  should  you  enter  the  Company's 
service,  you  would  have  every  chance  of  obtaining  a  post  there 
of  greater  importance  and  profit  than  you  could  hope  to  reach 
after  years  of  service  under  ordinary  conditions. 

"  I  myself  am  stationed  in  the  province  south  of  the  Sutlej, 
which  the  Sikhs  at  any  rate  consider  to  be  a  part  of  the  Pun- 
jaub,  and  am  pretty  well  acquainted  with  what  is  going  on  at 
Lahore.  I  don't  know  your  uncle  personally,  although  of 
course  I  know  him  well  by  reputation.  He  was  one  of  the 
best  of  the  European  officers  in  the  Sikh  service ;  and  although, 
like  all  the  others,  he  was  dismissed  at  the  bidding  of  the 
mutinous  soldiery,  I  have  always  heard  him  spoken  well  of. 
He  was  popular  among  the  men  of  the  two  regiments  that  he 
commanded,  and  bore  an  excellent  reputation  among  the 
natives  generally,  abstaining  from  the  high-handed  exactions 
by  which  some  of  the  foreign  officers  amassed  large  sums  of 
money.  He  is  said  to  have  been  prompt  in  action,  to  have 
maintained  excellent  order  amongst  his  men,  to  have  pro- 
tected the  natives  against  any  acts  of  plunderng  or  misconduct, 
and  the  districts  where  he  was  stationed  were  contented  and 
prosperous. 

"  Like  most  of  the  other  foreign  officers,  he  held  himself 
altogether  aloof  from  court  intrigues.  Doubtless  they  were 
perfectly  right  in  doing  so;  but  for  all  that,  as  matters  have 
turned  out,  it  might  have  been  better  for  the  Punjaub  had  these 
officers  gone  beyond  their  duties  and  thrown  their  whole 
weight  into  the  scale  in  favour  of  some  strong  man  who  would 
have  put  a  stop  to  the  dissensions  that  if  they  continue  will 
certainly  bring  ruin  upon  the  country. 

"However,  their  position  was  a  very  difficult  one.  The 
Sikh  chieftains  were  always  adverse  to  Runjeet  Singh's  policy 
of  Europeanizing  his  army,  and  were  extremely  jealous  of  the 
favour  he  extended  to  the  Europeans  in  his  service;  conse- 
quently the  position  of  these  officers  was,  from  the  moment  of 


EASTWARD   HO  !          X ''    W*  29 

V> 

his  death,  an  extremely  delicate  one.  Moreover,  it  is  probable 
that  the  Indian  authorities  would  have  viewed  with  consider- 
able disfavour  the  passing  of  the  affairs  of  the  Punjaub  into  the 
hands  of  European  adventurers,  of  whom  only  two  or  three 
were  English.  The  foreigners,  of  course,  would  have  had  no 
sympathy  whatever  with  our  aims,  and  would  indeed  have 
been  formidable  opponents  in  case  of  trouble,  their  interests 
lying  entirely  in  the  maintenance  of  the  present  state  of  things 
in  the  Punjaub. 

"  You  are  going  out  to  the  most  troubled  portion  of  India, 
youngster;  and  I  almost  wonder  at  your  uncle  allowing  you  to 
come,  for  there  will  be  a  great  convulsion  there  before  matters 
finally  settle  down." 

"  So  he  told  me  when  he  wrote,  sir.  I  am  only  going  out 
to  him  till  I  get  old  enough  to  either  go  into  the  army  or  to 
enter  the  Company's  service,  if  my  father's  friends  can  obtain 
a  commission  or  a  writership  for  me." 

"  Get  a  writership,  my  boy,  if  you  have  the  chance.  The 
civil  service  is  vastly  better  paid  than  the  military.  Well,  it 
may  be  that  we  shall  be  thrown  together  again  out  there.  It 
is  nearly  time  for  our  commissioner  at  Loodiana  to  go  home 
for  his  furlough,  and  I  think  it  very  probable  that  I  shall  be 
appointed  to  his  post  during  his  absence,  in  which  case  I  am 
pretty  certain  to  be  in  communication  with  your  uncle;  and 
it  may  be  that  when  the  time  comes  I  shall  be  able  to  lend  you 
a  helping  hand  to  enter  the  service.  If  you  stick  to  work  as 
you  are  doing  now,  I  shall  certainly  feel  justified  in  recom- 
mending you  as  one  who  would  prove  a  valuable  young  officer 
in  the  Punjaub  if  we  become  its  masters,  or  on  the  frontier  if 
the  country  still  maintains  its  independence.  In  the  mean- 
time, if  there  be  trouble  in  the  Punjaub  and  you  have  to  fly  for 
your  life,  remember  you  will  find  a  hearty  welcome  at  Loo- 
diana." 

The  voyage  was  free  from  any  incidents  of  importance. 
The  Deccan  rounded  the  Cape  without  experiencing  any 


30  THROUGH    THE    SIKH    WAR 

unusually  bad  weather,  and  except  for  one  or  two  minor  gales 
the  weather  was  fine  throughout  the  voyage. 

Most  of  the  passengers  were  delighted  when  she  dropped 
anchor  at  last  in  the  Hooghly,  but  much  as  Percy  longed  to 
see  the  wonders  of  India,  he  was  almost  sorry  when  the  voyage 
came  to  an  end,  for  the  time  had  passed  very  pleasantly  to 
him.  This  had  been  especially  the  case  towards  the  latter 
portion;  for  his  studies  had  increased  in  interest  as  he  acquired 
a  knowledge  of  the  language,  and  by  the  end  of  the  voyage  he 
had  come  to  know  a  good  many  of  the  passengers.  His  first 
friend,  Mr.  Fullarton,  had  spoken  warmly  to  others  in  favour 
of  the  quiet  lad,  of  whom  they  caught  sight  when  they  hap- 
pened to  stroll  forward  to  smoke  a  cigar,  occupied  so  intently 
upon  his  conversations  with  the  native  beside  him. 

"I  hate  book-worms,"  one  of  them  had  said  when  Mr. 
Fullarton  had  first  spoken  to  him  on  the  subject.  "Give  me 
a  lad  with  pluck  and  spirit,  and  I  don't  care  a  snap  of  the 
finger  whether  he  can  construe  Euripides  or  solve  a  problem  in 
high  mathematics.  What  we  want  for  India  are  men  who  can 
ride  and  shoot,  who  are  ready  at  any  moment  to  start  on  a 
hundred-mile  journey  on  horseback,  who  will  scale  a  hill  fort 
with  a  handful  of  men,  or  with  half  a  dozen  Sowars  tackle  a 
dacoit  and  his  band.  What  do  the  natives  care  for  our  learn- 
ing? It  is  our  pluck  and  fighting  powers  that  have  made  us 
their  masters." 

"  That  is  all  very  true,  Lyndhurst,  and  I  thoroughly  agree 
with  you  that  of  all  ways  of  choosing  officials  for  India 
examinations  would  be  the  very  worst;  but  this  lad  is  not  a 
book-worm  at  all  in  your  sense  of  the  word.  He  knows  that 
it  will  be  of  great  advantage  to  him  when  he  arrives  in  India 
to  be  able  to  speak  the  language,  and  he  has  accordingly  set 
himself  to  do  it  with  a  dogged  perseverance  that  would  do 
credit  to  a  man.  Look  how  he  has  utilized  the  voyage,  while 
the  cadets  and  ensigns  and  young  civilians  have  thrown  away 
six  months  of  their  lives  in  absolute  idleness.  Besides,  I  am 


EASTWARD    HO  !  31 

sure  the  boy  does  not  lack  either  pluck  or  spirit.  I  am  up  a 
good  deal  earlier  than  you  are  in  the  morning,  and  I  see  him 
going  about  the  rigging  like  a  monkey.  He  is  quite  as  much 
at  home  up  there  as  are  any  of  the  midshipmen,  some  of  whom 
have  been  four  or  five  years  at  sea.  I  saw  him  sky-larking 
the  other  evening  with  two  or  three  of  them,  and  I  can  tell  you 
he  quite  held  his  own.  He  is  certainly  a  favourite  with  all 
the  officers.  I  should  be  ready  to  wager  that  when  the  time 
comes  he  will  turn  out  well,  whatever  circumstances  he  may 
fall  upon.  He  is  a  merry  fellow  too,  and  has  one  of  the  most 
infectious  laughs  I  ever  heard;  he  is  no  more  like  your  ideal 
book- worm  than  I  am." 

The  only  time  that  Percy  came  aft  and  mixed  with  the  other 
passengers  was  when  they  practised  rifle  or  pistol  shooting, 
sometimes  at  empty  bottles  thrown  into  the  sea,  sometimes  at 
bottles  swinging  from  one  or  other  of  the  yardarms.  This 
amusement  was  practised  three  or  four  times  a  week,  for  it 
was  a  matter  of  importance  to  every  man,  military  or  civilian, 
to  be  a  good  shot.  It  was  useful  in  the  hunting  of  tigers  and 
other  big  game.  Life  might  depend  upon  proficiency  with  a 
pistol  if  attacked  by  a  fanatic  or  in  a  brush  with  dacoits,  while 
for  men  likely  to  be  engaged  with  the  fierce  tribesmen  of  the 
hills,  or  in  conflict  with  Sikh,  Beloochee,  Pathan,  or  Afghan, 
a  quick  eye  and  a  steady  hand  were  essential. 

Encouraged  by  Mr.  Fullarton,  Percy  got  out  his  pistols  on 
the  first  day  when  the  practice  began,  and  never  missed  an 
opportunity  afterwards.  "Never  mind  the  rifle,"  his  friend 
said;  "you  are  not  likely  to  do  tiger-hunting  at  present,  and 
you  will  have  plenty  of  time  and  opportunities  for  that  later  on. 
Stick  to  your  pistol  practice;  you  are  going  among  a  wild  set 
of  people,  where  the  knife  is  readily  drawn  in  a  quarrel,  and 
where  men  do  not  hesitate  to  rid  themselves  of  a  foe  or  a  rival 
by  assassination.  Practise  with  your  pistols  steadily  on  every 
occasion  here,  and  keep  it  up  afterwards;  it  may  be  of  more 
use  to  you  than  everything  you  have  learnt  at  school  from  the 


32  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

day  when  you  first  went  there.  You  know  I  approve  of  your 
sticking  to  your  Punjaubi,  but  you  can  well  spare  an  hour 
three  or  four  times  a  week;  and  although  it  may  do  you  more 
good  in  your  future  career  to  be  a  good  linguist  than  to  be  a 
good  pistol-shot,  the  last  may  be  the  means  of  saving  your  life, 
and  unless  you  can  do  that,  your  study  of  languages  will  be  so 
much  time  thrown  away." 

And  so  by  the  end  of  the  voyage  Percy  became  a  very  fair 
shot  with  the  pistol,  and  indeed  there  were  few  of  the  passen- 
gers who  could  break  a  swinging  bottle  more  frequently  than 
he.  He  was  surprised,  when  the  anchor  dropped,  at  the 
eagerness  evinced  by  the  majority  of  the  passengers  to  get  on 
shore.  He  himself  looked  on  quietly,  for  the  captain  had 
said  to  him  early  that  morning,  "There  is  no  use  in  your 
hurrying  ashore,  Groves;  you  know  no  one  there,  and  an  hour 
earlier  or  later  will  make  no  difference  to  you.  I  shall  be 
going  off  this  afternoon  and  will  take  you  with  me,  and  after 
I  have  been  to  the  shipping  office  I  will  go  with  you  to  the 
people  you  have  letters  for.  I  know  them  personally,  and  an 
introduction  from  me  will  probably  interest  them  more  in  you 
than  will  the  formal  letter  those  lawyer  fellows  are  likely  to 
have  written." 

The  captain's  introduction  was  of  great  benefit  to  Percy. 
The  agent  took  an  interest  in  him,  and  put  him  up  at  his 
house  for  a  fortnight.  At  the  end  of  that  time  he  arranged 
for  him  to  take  a  passage  up  country  in  a  native  craft  that  two 
or  three  officers  had  chartered  to  convey  them  to  Delhi,  beyond 
which  town  there  would  be  no  difficulty  in  hiring  a  boat  to 
the  point  at  which  he  would  disembark,  and  thence  travel  up 
by  road.  He  enjoyed  his  journey  much,  although  it  occupied 
a  considerable  time.  He  could  have  gone  very  much  faster 
by  road;  but  time- was  no  particular  object,  and  the  agent 
thought  that  he  would  be  cheated  right  and  left  in  his  bargains 
for  vehicles,  and  might  not  improbably  have  some  of  his  bag- 
gage stolen.  Percy  greatly  preferred  the  passage  by  river,  and 


EASTWARD    HO  !  r  _A  33 

when  finally  he  had  to  take  to  a  close  vehicle,  he  congratulated 
himself  that  he  had  accomplished  the  greater  part  of  the 
journey  free  from  the  dust,  heat,  and  inconveniences  of  land 
travel.  He  learned  that  he  would  have  done  much  better  had 
he  taken  his  passage  from  England  to  the  other  side  of  India 
and  ascended  the  Indus,  but  he  supposed  that  his  uncle  had 
directed  him  to  come  via  Calcutta  because  his  own  agent  was 
there  and  could  make  the  arrangements  for  him,  and  he  per- 
haps considered  that  the  passage  thence  by  water  would  be 
much  safer  than  one  through  the  recently-conquered  province 
of  Scinde. 

This  was  indeed,  as  he  afterwards  learnt,  the  reason  why 
Calcutta  had  been  chosen  instead  of  Bombay.  There  had, 
about  the  time  his  uncle  wrote,  been  a  number  of  robberies, 
sometimes  accompanied  by  murder,  of  persons  travelling  up 
the  Indus  in  boat,  and  it  was  for  this  reason  the  longer  and 
safer  route  up  the  Jumna  had  been  chosen.  He  left  the  boat 
at  Sultanpoor,  and  had  about  a  hundred  miles  of  travel  thence 
through  Umballah  and  Sirhind  to  Loodiana,  a  station  in  what 
was  known  as  the  protected  district.  Here  on  the  frontier  of 
the  Punjaub  were  stationed  some  British  troops  with  a  Resi- 
dent, whose  special  duty  was  to  keep  the  government  in- 
formed of  what  was  going  on  upon  the  other  side  of  the 
Sutlej. 

The  agent  had  advised  him  on  his  arrival  at  Loodiana  to  go 
straight  to  the  Residency. 

"It  is  probable  that  your  uncle  will  have  written  to  the 
Resident  about  your  coming,  and  that  instructions  as  to  the 
best  course  for  pursuing  your  journey  may  be  awaiting  you 
there.  It  is  a  long  way  from  Loodiana  to  his  place,  which 
lies  quite  in  the  north  of  the  Punjaub,  and  but  a  short  distance 
from  the  Afghan  frontier.  He  will  know  about  what  time  you 
will  arrive,  and  may  even  have  sent  down  one  of  his  officers  to 
accompany  you  on  the  way.  He  could  not,  of  course,  guess 
that  you  would  know  any  of  the  languages,  and  it  would  be 


34 


THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 


impossible  for  you,  speaking  nothing  but  English,  to  make 
your  way  alone  through  the  Punjaub.  Even  as  it  is,  I  should 
advise  you,  should  you  on  arriving  at  Loodiana  find  no  one 
there  from  your  uncle,  to  send  up  word  that  you  have  arrived, 
and  to  wait  quietly,  even  if  it  be  a  month,  till  you  hear  from 
him." 


CHAPTER   II 

THE   SHADOW   OF   WAR 

T  EAVING  the  cart  with  his  luggage  a  short  distance  awayr 
L*  Percy  entered  the  office  of  the  Residency,  and  giving  his 
name  to  a  clerk  said  that  he  was  desirous  of  speaking  to  the 
Resident. 

The  clerk  on  his  return  from  the  inner  room  requested 
Percy  to  follow  him.  An  officer  was  sitting  at  a  desk.  He 
iooked  up  with  a  smile  as  the  lad  entered,  and  Percy  was 
astonished  to  see  Mr.  Fullarton,  to  whom  he  had  said  good- 
bye on  board  the  Deccan. 

"You  did  not  expect  to  see  me  here,  Groves?"  he  said  as 
he  shook  him  cordially  by  the  hand. 

"  No  indeed,  sir,  I  had  not  the  slightest  idea  that  you  had 
left  Calcutta.  I  am  glad  indeed  to  see  you." 

"I  only  stopped  there  a  few  hours,"  the  officer  said.  "As 
soon  as  I  got  to  Government  House  I  was  told  that  Macpher- 
son  was  ill,  and  that  I  must  travel  up  at  full  speed  to  relieve 
him,  so  I  started  next  morning  and  travelled  as  fast  as  horses 
could  take  me  up  the  country.  I  have  been  here  for  more 
than  three  weeks.  I  have  not  forgotten  you,  and  as  soon  as 
I  arrived  here  I  sent  off  a  chit  to  your  uncle  to  tell  him  that 
you  had  landed  at  Calcutta,  and  would  probably  be  here  in 
the  course  of  a  fortnight  or  three  weeks.  Two  days  ago  one 
of  his  native  officers  with  an  escort  of  sixteen  men  turned  up 

35 


36  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 


here.  They  are  encamped  on  the  plain  over  there.  You  will 
know  the  tent  by  a  blue  flag  flying  before  it. 

"  I  told  your  uncle  that  I  had  made  your  acquaintance  on 
board  the  ship,  and  that  I  thought  he  would  be  very  well 
pleased  with  you.  I  did  not  tell  him  anything  about  your 
having  picked  up  so  much  Punjaubi,  but  left  it  for  you  to 
give  him  a  pleasant  surprise.  Of  course  you  will  put  up  here 
for  to-night.  I  shall  be  knocking  off  work  in  a  quarter  of  an 
hour,  and  in  the  meantime  you  may  as  well  go  and  have  your 
bath,  after  which  you  will  feel  more  comfortable.  I  will  send 
a  man  across  to  your  fellows  to  tell  them  you  have  arrived,  and 
will  be  ready  to  start  in  the  morning.  By  the  way,  I  think  it 
would  be  as  well  if  you  went  over  there  at  once  ;  it  would 
please  them,  and  there  is  nothing  like  making  a  good  impres- 
sion. My  buggy  will  be  at  the  door  in  ten  minutes,  and  I 
will  drive  you  out  there.  So  you  had  better  have  'a  prelim- 
inary wash  now,  and  can  take  your  bath  after  we  get  back." 

Touching  the  bell  a  servant  entered.  Mr.  Fullarton  gave 
him  orders  to  take  Percy  to  a  room,  to  have  what  boxes  he 
required  carried  up  there,  and  to  pile  the  rest  in  the  hall.  By 
the  time  Percy  had  got  rid  of  some  of  the  dust  of  travel,  and 
changed  his  travelling  suit  for  another,  the  Resident  was 
ready,  and  they  were  soon  driving  over  the  sandy  plain  in  a 
light  trap  drawn  by  a  wiry-looking  native  pony.  In  a  few 
minutes  they  reached  a  small  tent,  before  which  waved  a  blue 
flag.  As  they  approached  a  stir  was  seen.  A  native  officer 
ran  out  of  the  tent,  ranged  his  men  in  military  order,  and 
placing  himself  in  front  of  them  saluted  as  the  Resident  drove 
up. 

"Good  afternoon,  Nand  Chund;  I  have  brought  the  col- 
onel's nephew  over  to  see  you.  He  has  just  arrived,  and  will 
be  ready  to  start  with  you  to-morrow,  but  even  before  eating 
he  wished  to  see  the  officer  whom  his  uncle  had  chosen  as  his 
escort." 

The  Sikh  raised  his  hand  to  his  cap  in  salute  to  Percy,  and 


THE    SHADOW    OF    WAR  37 

said  in  his  native  tongue:  "All  happiness  to  the  nephew  of 
my  good  lord !  " 

"Thank  you,  Nand  Chund,"  Percy  replied  in  the  same 
tongue,  "  I  am  sure  that  you  must  be  an  officer  in  whom  my 
uncle  has  great  trust  and  confidence  or  he  would  not  have 
chosen  you  for  such  a  mission." 

The  Sikh  looked  greatly  surprised  at  being  thus  answered  in 
his  own  language. 

"I  did  not  know,"  he  said,  "that  the  young  sahib  had  ac- 
quired our  tongue.  My  lord  told  me  you  would  not  under- 
stand me,  and  that  I  should  have  to  explain  to  you  by  signs 
anything  that  it  was  necessary  for  you  to  know." 

"  I  speak  your  language  but  poorly  at  present,  but  I  hope  to 
do  so  well  before  I  have  been  long  with  you,"  Percy  answered. 
"My  uncle  was  well,  I  hope,  when  you  left  him?  " 

"  He  was  well,  sahib;  though  much  troubled  by  the  machina- 
tions of  powerful  ones  who  are  his  enemies;  but  his  heart  was 
light  at  the  news  that  you  would  soon  be  with  him." 

After  a  little  further  conversation  Percy  drove  off  with  Mr. 
Fullarton,  after  having,  at  a  hint  from  the  latter,  handed  to 
the  officer  twenty  rupees,  to  be  laid  out  in  providing  a  feast 
for  the  troopers. 

"They  will  all  be  as  drunk  as  hogs  to-night,"  Mr.  Fullarton 
said ;  "  the  Sikhs  are  one  of  the  few  races  in  India  who  drink 
to  excess.  They  do  so  from  the  highest  to  the  lowest.  The 
Old  Lion  himself  used  to  be  drunk  every  night.  However,  as 
they  will  have  a  good  meal  before  setting-to  at  the  liquor,  you 
will  see  that  they  will  all  be  as  fresh  and  bright  in  the  morning 
as  if  they  had  touched  nothing  stronger  than  tea.  They  have 
wonderful  constitutions,  and  after  a  few  hours'  sleep  shake  off 
the  effects  of  a  carouse  that  would  make  an  Englishman  ill  for 
three  or  four  days." 

After  an  hour's  drive  they  returned  to  the  Residency.  As 
they  entered  the  house  Percy  was  greeted  by  his  former 
instructor,  who  had  been  out  when  he  first  arrived,  and  who 
now  conducted  him  to  his  room. 


38  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

"It  is  far  better  here  than  on  board  the  ship,  sahib,"  he 
said.  "There  Ram  Singh  was  of  no  account,  even  the  com- 
mon sailors  pushed  and  jostled  him;  here  he  is  Fullarton 
Sahib's  butler,  and  gives  orders  to  all  the  servants." 

"No  doubt  you  feel  it  in  that  way,"  Percy  laughed.  "I 
feel  it  is  better  because  here  is  a  great  cool  room  and  quiet, 
and  a  bath  ready  for  me  without  having  to  wait  for  an  hour 
for  my  turn.  It  is  certainly  very  much  more  comfortable,  but 
there  are  drawbacks  too.  There  was  no  dust  on  board  ship, 
no  occasion  for  an  armed  guard,  no  fear  of  disturbance  or 
troubles." 

"That  is  so,  sahib;  but  what  would  life  be  worth  if  some- 
times we  did  not  have  a  change  and  adventure.  As  I  have 
told  you,  I  have  had  my  share  of  it,  and  now  I  am  well  content 
to  be  the  head  servant  of  the  Burra-sahib.  But  my  lord  is 
young,  and  it  is  well  for  him  that  he  should  learn  to  bear  him- 
self as  a  man,  and  to  face  danger." 

"  Well,  it  may  be  so,  Ram  Singh,  but  just  at  present  it  seems 
to  me  that  I  should  prefer  a  peaceful  life  for  a  few  years." 

"The  sooner  a  cockerel  learns  to  use  his  spurs,  the  better 
fighting  bird  he  will  turn  out,"  the  man  said  sententiously. 

"Yes,  that  is  all  very  well,"  Percy  replied.  "But  if  he  gets 
"badly  mauled  when  he  is  a  cockerel  he  is  likely  to  shirk 
fighting  afterwards." 

After  taking  his  bath  and  dressing  himself  in  a  suit  of  white 
linen,  Percy  went  down  to  dinner.  He  was  pleased  to  find 
himself  alone  with  Mr.  Fullarton,  who  in  the  course  of  the 
evening  told  him  much  more  than  he  had  hitherto  known  of 
the  state  of  affairs  in  the  Punjaub. 

"Things  look  very  bad,"  he  said.  "But  it  is  possible  that 
they  may  go  on  for  months  and  even  years  before  the  crisis 
comes.  As  to  this,  however,  your  uncle  will  be  able  to  tell 
you  more  than  I  can.  Mine  is,  of  course,  the  official  view  of 
matters,  gleaned  from  the  reports  of  men  in  our  pay  at  Lahore 
and  other  places  in  the  Punjaub.  The  reports  of  such  men. 


THE   SHADOW    OF   WAR  39 

however,  are  always  open  to  grave  suspicion.  .As  they  take 
bribes  from  us  they  may  take  bribes  from  others,  or  may  be 
are  in  some  way  interested  in  deceiving  us.  Your  uncle  will 
doubtless  be  much  better  informed.  Although  he  has  taken 
no  active  part  in  the  plots  and  conspiracies  that  have  been 
continually  going  on  ever  since  the  death  of  Runjeet  Singh, 
he  must  have  been  more  or  less  behind  the  scenes  throughout, 
and  will  certainly  have  tried  and  trusted  agents  at  Lahore. 

"  At  present  you  are  only  interested  in  these  matters  as  far 
as  they  concern  the  safety  of  your  uncle  and  yourself.  Still  it 
is  always  useful  in  a  country  like  this  to  have  an  insight  into 
what  is  going  on  around  you.  Should  there  be  trouble,  remem- 
ber that  the  Sikhs  value  courage,  quickness,  and  decision  above 
all  things.  I  am  not  supposing  for  a  moment  that  you  are 
likely  to  show  the  white-feather,  still  you  may  be  involved  in 
danger  that  would  shake  the  nerves  of  hardened  men.  The 
thing  to  remember  is  always  to  assume  an  air  of  courage  and 
coolness.  To  show  weakness  would  forfeit  the  respect  of  your 
own  people,  and  would  in  no  way  alter  the  fate  that  would 
befall  you  if  you  fell  into  the  hands  of  your  foes.  You  know 
the  old  saying — 'Assume  a  virtue  if  you  have  it  not.'  That 
you  should  be  alarmed  in  such  a  position  would  be  only  natural, 
but  you  must  if  possible  conceal  the  fact,  and  must  nerve  your- 
self to  put  on  as  great  an  air  of  coolness  and  indifference  as 
you  can  muster.  Remember  there  are  very  few  men  who  do 
not  feel  horribly  uncomfortable  when  exposed  to  great  dangers, 
and  that  bravery  exists  not  so  much  in  having  no  feeling  of 
fear  as  of  concealing  all  expression  of  it. 

"  When  you  hear  a  man  boasting  that  he  has  never  felt  fear, 
and  that  he  enjoys  being  under  fire,  take  my  word  for  it  he  is 
a  liar.  In  the  heat  of  battle,  and  especially  in  the  excitement 
of  a  cavalry  charge,  the  sensation  of  fear  is  lost;  but  in  the 
preliminary  stage  I  never  knew  a  man  yet  who,  speaking  hon- 
estly, would  not  confess  that  he  felt  horribly  nervous.  I  will 
not  keep  you  up  any  longer,  you  have  had  a  long  journey 


40  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

to-day  and  must  be  early  in  bed.  You  will  be  called  before 
daybreak,  for  you  may  be  sure  your  men  will  be  here  before 
the  sun  is  up,  and  they  will  be  gratified  to  find  that  you  are 
prepared  to  be  off.  I  need  not  repeat  now  what  I  told  you  on 
board  the  ship,  that  should  you  have  to  fly  for  your  life  you 
will  meet  with  a  warm  welcome  here." 

It  was  still  dark  when  Percy  was  aroused  by  Ram  Singh. 

"It  is  time  to  get  up,  sahib.  I  have  water  boiling,  and 
there  will  be  a  cup  of  tea  ready  for  you  as  soon  as  you  have 
had  your  bath.  The  bheesti  is  outside  with  the  water-skin." 

"All  right!  "  Percy  said,  jumping  out  of  bed.  "Send  him 
in." 

Taking  a  bath  consisted  of  squatting  down  in  the  corner  of 
the  room,  where  the  floor  was  made  to  slope  to  a  hole  which 
carried  off  the  water  poured  from  a  skin  over  the  head  of  the 
bather.  As  he  dressed,  Percy  drank  a  cup  of  tea  and  ate  a 
couple  of  biscuits,  while  Ram  Singh  packed  up  his  trunk 
again.  He  had  just  finished  when  he  heard  the  trampling  of 
horses.  He  at  once  went  out. 

"You  are  in  good  time,  Nand  Chund." 

"It  would  not  have  done  to  have  kept  the  sahib  waiting," 
the  Sikh  said,  "  though  we  scarce  expected  to  find  him  ready 
for  us  so  soon." 

He  then  ordered  the  baggage-horses  to  be  brought  up,  and 
four  strong  ponies  were  led  forward.  Percy's  trunks,  which 
had  all  been  made  of  a  size  suited  to  such  transport,  were 
firmly  lashed  one  on  each  side  of  each  saddle.  When  this 
was  done  a  handsome  horse  was  brought  forward  for  Percy. 
He  was  about  to  turn  to  enter  the  house  to  say  good-bye  to 
Mr.  Fullarton,  who  had  the  night  before  told  him  he  should 
be  up  before  he  started,  when  the  Resident  made  his  appear- 
ance. 

"I  always  rise  before  the  sun,"  he  said,  "and  take  a  drive 
or  a  ride,  and  am  back  before  it  gets  too  hot  for  pleasure. 
Then  I  have  a  bath,  change  of  clothes,  and  am  ready  for  my 


THE    SHADOW   OF    WAR  41 

work.  Early  morning  and  evening  are  the  only  times  that  life 
is  enjoyable  here,  and  unless  one  takes  exercise  then  one 
cannot  expect  to  keep  in  health.  Good-bye,  Groves.  Tell 
your  uncle  to  keep  me  informed  of  what  is  going  on  whenever 
he  gets  an  opportunity.  Take  care  of  yourself,  and,  whatever 
comes,  keep  your  head  clear  and  your  wits  sharpened.  Many 
a  life  is  thrown  away  from  want  of  prompt  decision  at  a  critical 
moment." 

Percy  shook  hands  with  his  kind  friend,  and  then  leapt  into 
the  saddle  without  putting  his  foot  into  the  stirrup,  a  trick  he 
had  learned  at  the  riding-school.  A  murmur  of  approval  ran 
through  the  men,  who  muttered  to  themselves,  "  He  under- 
stands a  horse;  a  brisk  young  fellow,  he  will  do  no  discredit 
to  our  lord."  Then  he  took  his  place  by  the  side  of  Nand 
Chund,  waved  his  hand  to  Mr.  Fullarton,  and  started.  His 
companion  at  once  put  his  horse  to  a  hand  gallop. 

"Surely  you  do  not  mean  to  travel  far  at  this  speed?" 
Percy  said.  "The  pack-animals  will  not  be  able  to  keep  up 
with  us." 

"They  will  follow,  sahib.  You  see  I  have  left  four  men  in 
charge  of  them." 

"Yes,  and  you  have  eight  men  here.  Where  are  the  other 
four,  for  I  counted  sixteen  yesterday?  " 

"They  started  before  dark,  sahib,  with  the  four  other  bag- 
gage animals.  Two  of  them  we  shall  find  when  we  halt  for 
food,  when  the  sun  gets  high.  They  will  have  pitched  a  tent 
in  the  shade  of  some  tree,  and  will  have  the  meal  cooked  in 
readiness  for  us.  The  other  two  will  have  gone  forward  to 
the  point  where  we  shall  rest  for  the  night.  They  have 
another  tent,  and  will  have  the  evening  meal  in  readiness. 
So  it  will  be  each  day.  They  will  travel  by  night,  we  by  day. 
At  the  end  of  three  days  we  shall  have  reached  a  point  where 
care  will  be  a  necessity,  and  will  then  travel  in  a  body." 

"But  from  whom  have  we  reason  to  fear  danger?"  Percy 
asked. 


42  THROUGH   THE  SIKH  WAR 

"We  do  not  fear  danger,"  the  Sikh  replied,  "but  we  prepare 
to  meet  it.  In  the  first  place  there  are  robbers — bands  of 
men  who  acknowledge  no  master,  such  as  deserters  from  the 
army,  fugitives  who  have  excited  the  enmity  of  some  powerful 
chief,  and  criminals  who  have  escaped  justice.  Such  men 
form  bands,  rob  villages,  plunder  well-to-do  peasants,  and 
waylay,  rob,  and  murder  travellers.  These  are  the  ordinary 
foes;  all  those  who  journey  have  to  prepare  for  them,  and  they 
are  not  really  dangerous  to  a  well-armed  party.  Then,  again, 
there  are  the  bands  by  profession  robbers,  but  who  are  for  the 
time  hired  by  some  powerful  or  wealthy  sirdar  who  wishes  to 
gratify  a  private  spite.  Openly  perhaps  he  would  not  dare  to 
move,  and  he  therefore  remains  in  the  background,  and  hires 
bands  of  robbers  to  do  his  business.  Such  bands  are  far  more 
formidable  than  those  composed  of  ordinary  marauders,  for 
they  are  of  a  strength  proportioned  to  the  object  they  have  to 
accomplish,  and  may  even  number  hundreds. 

"  It  is  these  against  whom  we  have  to  take  precautions.  My 
lord  your  uncle  has  powerful  enemies,  and  these  doubtless 
employ  spies,  and  are  made  aware  of  all  that  passes  in  his 
stronghold.  Should  they  have  learned  that  he  was  expecting 
your  arrival,  they  would  of  course  see  that  your  capture  would 
be  a  valuable  one,  as  they  could  work  on  him  through  you. 
At  any  rate  the  departure  of  my  band  is  sure  to  be  noticed, 
and  though  we  travelled  by  a  circuitous  route  we  may  probably 
have  been  tracked  to  Loodiana.  Besides,  they  might  think 
that  I  had  some  important  mission  to  the  British  Resident 
there,  and  that  I  may  be  the  bearer  of  some  letter  that  might 
enable  them  to  work  my  master's  ruin,  and  so  will  spare  no 
pains  to  wrest  it  from  me. 

"  For  the  first  three  days  we  do  not  follow  the  route  leading 
to  my  lord's  stronghold,  consequently  there  is  little  fear  of  an 
ambush;  but  during  the  last  five  days  of  the  journey,  when  we 
are  making  for  the  fortress,  we  shall  have  to  sleep  with  one  eye 
open,  to  travel  by  unfrequented  roads,  and  for  the  most  part 


THE    SHADOW   OF   WAR  43 

by  night.  The  colonel  would  have  come  himself  to  meet  you, 
but  in  the  first  place  his  visit  to  Loodiana  would  be  seized 
upon  by  his  enemies  as  a  proof  that  he  was  leagued  with  the 
British,  and  in  the  second  his  presence  is  required  in  the 
castle,  where,  so  long  as  he  is  present,  there  is  little  fear  of 
any  sudden  surprise  or  attack,  but  were  he  away  some  traitor 
might  corrupt  a  guard  or  open  a  gate,  and  thus  let  in  the 
troops  of  an  enemy." 

"  But  there  is  no  civil  war,  Nand  Chund.  How  then  could 
a  chief  venture  to  attack  my  uncle?  " 

"There  is  no  war,"  the  Sikh  repeated,  "but  the  sirdars 
never  hesitate  to  collect  their  followers  and  attack  a  rival  when 
they  have  a  chance.  Even  in  the  days  of  Runjeet  Singh  this 
was  so;  for  although  his  hand  was  a  heavy  one,  it  was  easy  to 
bribe  those  about  him  to  place  the  matter  in  a  favourable 
light,  and  a  handsome  present  would  do  the  rest.  But  since 
the  Lion  has  passed  away  there  has  been  no  power  in  the  land. 
The  government  has  been  feeble,  and  the  great  sirdars  have 
done  as  it  pleases  them,  so  there  is  everywhere  rapine  and 
confusion.  Those  who  are  strong  take  from  those  who  are 
weak:  the  traders  who  prospered  and  grew  rich  in  the  old  days 
now  fly  the  land  or  bury  their  wealth,  and  assume  the  appear- 
ance of  poverty;  the  markets  are  deserted,  and  towns  flourish- 
ing under  Runjeet  are  now  well-nigh  deserted." 

"  But  why  have  they  a  special  animosity  against  my  uncle?  " 

"First  because  he  is  a  European,  secondly  because  he  is 
wealthy,  thirdly  because  those  who  fly  from  the  extortion  or 
the  tyranny  of  others  find  a  refuge  with  him,  lastly  because  the 
district  under  his  charge  is  flourishing  and  prosperous  while 
others  are  impoverished.  Merchants  elsewhere  clamour  for 
the  rights  that  he  gives  those  under  his  protection,  and  for 
taxes  as  light  as  those  imposed  by  him  in  his  district." 

"But  I  thought  that  all  Europeans  had  been  deprived  of 
commands,"  Percy  said. 

"That  is  true,  but  in  this  country  a  man  only  surrenders  a 


44  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

profitable  post  when  he  can  no  longer  hold  it.  Even  Runjeet 
Singh's  orders  to  governors  to  surrender  their  posts  to  others 
were  often  disobeyed,  and  he  was  obliged  to  march  armies  to 
enforce  them.  It  is  far  more  so  now.  Three  years  ago  my 
lord  was  nominally  deprived  of  his  command  of  the  district  as 
well  as  that  of  his  troops  by  the  orders  of  the  court  at  Lahore, 
but  he  was  too  wise  to  obey.  Had  he  opened  the  gates  he 
would  assuredly  have  been  taken  a  prisoner  to  Lahore,  and 
there  have  been  put  to  death;  so  he  held  on,  and  none  have 
cared  to  undertake  the  work  of  turning  him  out. 

"Still  the  man  appointed  as  his  successor  is,  we  may  be 
sure,  only  waiting  his  opportunity.  He  belongs  to  the  family 
of  one  of  the  most  powerful  of  the  princes — one  who  could 
put  ten  thousand  men  in  the  field;  but  the  colonel  has  nearly 
two  thousand  good  soldiers,  and  such  strong  walls  that  with 
these  he  could  repulse  an  open  attack  by  three  times  that 
number.  Besides  this  all  the  district  is  in  his  favour.  They 
dread  nothing  so  much  as  that  another  should  take  his  place, 
and  the  news  that  an  army  was  advancing  would  at  once  swell 
his  force  by  three  thousand  fighting  men.  Moreover,  he  has 
allies  among  the  hill  tribes  who  have  never,  save  under  the 
pressure  of  force,  acknowledged  the  authority  of  Lahore.  It 
is  not  until  his  rival's  relations  have  made  some  compact  with 
another  sirdar  equally  powerful  that  they  are  likely  to  attack 
us  openly. 

"Treachery,  however,  is  always  to  be  feared,  and  still  more 
the  knife  of  the  assassin.  We  believe  that  the  soldiers  can  be 
trusted  to  a  man;  but  who  can  tell?  Gold  is  very  powerful, 
and  among  two  thousand  there  must  be  some  who  would  sell 
their  dearest  friend  were  the  bribe  sufficiently  large." 

"  But  they  say  that  the  power  of  the  nobles  is  broken,  and 
that  it  is  the  army  that  is  master,"  Percy  remarked. 

"That  is  so.  The  soldiers  are  the  lords  of  the  Punjaub. 
Runjeet  Singh's  policy  was  to  strengthen  the  army,  which 
under  its  foreign  officers  was  always  faithful  to  him.  After 


THE    SHADOW    OF   WAR  45 

his  death  there  was  no  strong  hand,  and  the  force  which  the 
Old  Lion  had  trained  to  conquer  his  foes  turned  upon  the 
country  and  became  its  master.  They  clamoured  for  the  dis- 
missal of  all  foreign  officers,  for  increase  of  pay,  for  the  right 
to  choose  their  own  leaders,  and  all  these  things  they  obtained. 
There  is  no  longer  discipline  or  order.  They  oppress  the 
people,  they  dictate  terms  to  the  court,  they  can  make  or 
unmake  maharajahs.  If  at  present  they  are  quiet,  it  is  be- 
cause they  have  everything  they  can  ask  for.  Thus  then  there 
is  no  one  to  control  the  sirdars,  who  can  do  as  it  pleases  them, 
if  only  they  keep  on  good  terms  with  the  leaders  of  the  army. 
That  would  matter  but  little,  but  when  they  wish  to  attack 
each  other  they  have  but  to  buy  the  services  of  a  regiment  or 
two  and  the  thing  is  done.  There  lies  the  danger  of  our  lord. 

"Those  most  hostile  to  him  would  not  dare  to  attack  with 
their  own  followers,  but  they  will  sooner  or  later  obtain  the 
assistance  of  some  of  the  military  chiefs;  the  more  so  that 
these  are  hostile  themselves  to  our  lord  because  he  is  a  for- 
eigner, and  at  present  the  cry  is,  death  to  the  foreigner.  It 
is  only  because  the  colonel  had  so  good  a  name  in  the  army, 
— for  all  knew  that  although  nowhere  was  discipline  more 
strict,  he  was  always  just  and  kindly,  that  no  man  was  punished 
without  cause,  that  he  had  no  favourites,  that  he  oppressed 
none,  and  used  all  the  influence  he  possessed  with  the  old 
maharajah  to  obtain  the  pay  for  his  men  regularly, — that  the 
military  chiefs  have  so  far  failed  to  get  the  soldiers  to  consent 
to  any  movement  against  him. 

"  Besides,  the  troops  are  aware  that  he  is  a  brave  leader, 
and  know  that  his  men  will  die  in  his  defence.  Therefore,  it 
would  need  a  higher  bribe  than  usual  to  induce  them  to  risk 
their  lives  in  a  struggle  from  which  they  would  gain  nothing. 
It  is  far  easier  to  revolt  for  extra  pay  than  to  obtain  the  money 
by  an  attack  on  the  colonel's  fortress.  Thus,  for  aught  we 
know,  it  may  be  years  before  serious  trouble  comes.  It  will 
depend  upon  what  events  occur.  At  present  the  soldiers  are 


46  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

well  content  to  do  nothing  but  eat  and  drink  at  the  expense  of 
the  people.  In  time  they  will  become  restless,  and  then,  who 
knows,  they  may  attack  and  plunder  the  strong  places,  or  they 
may  make  war  upon  the  English.  They  believe  that  they  are 
invincible.  They  have  an  immense  number  of  guns,  and  they 
think  that  because  the  Sikhs  have  conquered  Cashmere  and 
wrested  territory  from  the  Afghans,  and  hold  all  the  country 
north  of  the  Sutlej,  nothing  can  withstand  them.  I  know 
nothing,  I  am  but  an  ignorant  man  as  to  all  things  outside  our 
country;  but  I  know  that  the  English  conquered  Scinde 
although  its  sirdars  and  soldiers  were  many  and  brave,  that 
they  made  themselves  masters  of  Afghanistan,  and  even  after 
their  great  misfortune  there  came  back  and  again  took  Cabul 
and  punished  the  Afghans;  and  I  say  to  myself,  Why  should 
the  Sikhs  want  to  fight  this  people,  who  do  not  interfere  with 
them,  and  who  have  always  respected  the  treaties  they  have 
made  with  us? 

"The  Old  Lion,  who  feared  no  one  and  who  spread  his  rule 
far  and  wide,  always  kept  friends  with  the  English,  although 
most  of  his  chiefs  would  have  taken  advantage  of  their  trouble 
in  Afghanistan  to  go  to  war  with  them.  He  knew  the  power 
of  the  foreigners,  and  was  always  ready  to  engage  white  officers 
to  teach  his  soldiers.  He  had  a  wiser  head  than  any  of  the 
soldiers  who  are  now  ready  to  raise  the  cry  of  war  with  the 
English;  and  I  know  our  lord's  opinion  is,  that  should  we 
engage  in  a  struggle  with  his  people  we  shall  assuredly  be 
beaten.  But  what  avail  are  these  things  with  men  puffed  up 
with  pride,  and  with  the  belief  that  they  are  invincible.  It 
is  certain  that  some  day  or  other  the  army  will  clamour  for 
war  with  the  English,  and  who  is  there  to  say  them  nay?  Not 
the  boy,  Maharajah  Dhuleep  Singh,  nor  the  Ranee,  his  mother 
and  guardian.  Then  we  shall  see  how  things  will  go." 

"There  is  no  doubt  how  things  will  go,"  Percy  said.  "The 
English  will  conquer  the  country,  as  they  have  all  the  other 
parts  of  India  that  have  tried  their  strength  with  them." 


THE    SHADOW    OF   WAR  47 

"They  have  never  fought  a  country  like  ours,"  the  officer 
said  a  little  proudly.  "The  army  is  a  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  strong,  and  the  chiefs  must  all  join,  so  there  will  be 
two  hundred  thousand  at  least,  and  all  good  fighting  men. 
They  are  well  armed  and  have  vast  stores  of  guns  and  ammuni- 
tion: they  have  been  taught  to  fight  in  European  fashion. 
We  are  told  that  if  all  the  British  troops  in  India  came  against 
them  they  would  number  scarce  fifty  thousand." 

"That  may  be,"  Percy  agreed,  "but  they  would  win — they 
always  have  won,  and  often  against  odds  quite  as  great.  Be- 
sides, when  your  two  hundred  thousand  men  are  in  the  field 
you  would  have  your  whole  fighting  power,  while  if  it  were 
necessary  England  could  send  out  army  after  army  as  strong 
as  that  now  in  India.  How  far  is  it  to  our  first  halting-place  ? 
The  sun  is  beginning  to  get  very  hot." 

"  It  is  three  hours'  ride  from  Loodiana.  Going  at  an  easy 
pace  we  shall  be  there  in  another  hour." 

Percy  was  heartily  glad  when  his  companion  pointed  out  a 
yellow  speck  under  a  clump  of  trees  and  told  him  it  was  the 
tent.  "  I  brought  with  us  only  small  tents,  such  as  the  soldiers 
use  on  their  expeditions,"  he  said,  "so  -as  to  excite  the  less 
attention;  they  are  mere  shelters  from  the  sun  and  night  air." 

"That  is  all  we  want,  Nand  Chund." 

"  They  weigh  only  a  few  pounds,  sahib,  and  can  be  carried 
by  a  horseman  in  addition  to  his  ordinary  baggage.  We  have 
three  or  four  of  them  with  us,  so  that  we  can  at  any  time 
pitch  one  should  we  arrive  at  a  halting-place  before  the  bag- 
gage animals." 

A  quarter  of  an  hour  later  Percy  was  lying  under  the  shade 
of  the  tent,  the  sides  of  which  .were  tied  up  to  permit  the  air 
to  pass  freely  through.  In  a  short  time  tiffin  was  served,  con- 
sisting of  an  excellent  pillau  of  fowl,  a  dish  of  meat  prepared 
with  savoury  condiments,  followed  by  an  assortment  of  deli- 
cious fruit.  The  drink  consisted  of  water  cooled  in  a  porous 
jar,  flavoured  with  the  juice  of  a  slightly  acid  fruit. 


48  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

"  I  would  have  brought  wine,"  the  officer  said  apologetically, 
"but  my  lord  your  uncle  said  that  you  would  not  be  accus- 
tomed to  it,  and  that,  riding  in  the  sun,  it  was  better  you 
should  take  only  cooling  liquors.  He  has  sent,  however,  a 
tin  filled  with  an  herb  that  with  hot  water  makes  a  drink  of 
which  he  is  very  fond;  it  is  sent  up  to  him  in  a  chest  from 
Calcutta.  He  said  you  would  know  what  to  do  with  it.  He 
calls  it  tea." 

"I  am  glad  of  that,"  Percy  said.  "There  is  no  difficulty 
in  preparing  it.  It  needs  but  boiling  water  poured  over  it. 
I  will  have  some  this  evening.  I  am  very  fond  of  it  too,  but 
I  am  accustomed  to  drink  it  with  sugar  and  milk." 

"We  have  sugar,"  the  man  said,  "but  milk  will  be  difficult 
to  obtain.  Our  master  never  uses  it  with  his  tea." 

"I  shall  get  accustomed  to  it,"  Percy  said,  "though  I  am 
sure  I  sha'n't  like  it  so  well  at  first.  At  what  time  do  we  move 
on  again?" 

"In  about  six  hours,  if  it  so  pleases  you.  It  is  ten  o'clock 
now,  by  four  the  sun  will  have  lost  some  of  its  power." 

"  How  many  hours'  ride  shall  we  have?  " 

"Three  hours  at  a  canter.  We  are  doing  but  a  short  jour- 
ney to-day,  as  it  is  the  first.  After  this  we  shall  never  be  less 
than  eight  hours  in  the  saddle;  that  is,  if  it  is  not  too  much 
for  you." 

"Oh,  it  is  not  too  much,"  Percy  replied,  "but  I  shall  feel 
rather  stiff  for  the  first  day  or  two,  after  not  having  ridden  for 
so  many  months ;  but  I  certainly  should  be  glad  to  travel  as 
much  as  possible  in  the  evening." 

"  We  can  do  that,  sahib,  for  we  shall  have  a  moon  for  the 
next  week." 

"How  may  days  will  it  take  us  altogether?  " 

"  We  are  now  but  half  a  mile  from  Aliwal,  where  we  shall 
cross  the  Sutlej,  and  shall  encamp  to-night  near  Sultanpoor. 
As  I  told  you,  we  are  to-day  travelling  as  if  going  to  Lahore. 
To-morrow  we  shall  strike  north  and  shall  camp  near  Adinana- 


THE    SHADOW   OF    WAR  49 

gar.  The  next  morning  we  shall  cross  the  Ravee,  and  shall 
then  turn  to  the  north-west,  pass  by  Kailapore  and  Sealkote, 
cross  the  Chenab  and  Jhelum  rivers,  then  ride  north  some 
forty  miles,  where  we  shall  strike  the  hills  and  reach  our  lord's 
district,  which  extends  some  thirty  miles  either  way  among  the 
hills.  This  is  the  route  by  which  I  hope  to  travel,  but  if  I 
hear  of  danger  by  the  way  we  shall  of  course  strike  off  to  the 
right  or  left  as  may  be  most  convenient.  The  journeys  are 
from  thirty  to  forty  miles  a  day.  Our  horses  could,  of  course, 
go  much  farther,  but  we  must  regulate  our  speed  by  that  of  the 
baggage  animals.  We  shall  be  fully  a  week  upon  the  road. 
Coming  down  we  did  it  in  five  days  in  order  to  be  in  time  for 
your  arrival." 

"Those  eight  trunks  are  not  all  filled  with  my  things,"  Percy 
said  with  a  laugh.  "You  must  not  think  I  travel  about  with 
all  that  luggage.  Four  of  them  are  mine,  the  other  four  are 
filled  with  things  my  uncle  wrote  to  his  agents  at  home  to  get 
for  him  and  send  out  with  me.  I  have  no  idea  what  is  in 
them." 

"The  baggage  is  nothing  if  we  were  travelling  in  peaceful 
times,"  the  Sikh  said,  "but  at  present  the  lighter  one  goes  the 
less  likelihood  of  being  meddled  with.  As  it  is,  you  will  not 
know  your  boxes  when  we  come  up  with  the  baggage  animals 
this  evening.  It  would  never  have  done  to  be  travelling 
through  the  Punjaub  at  present  with  boxes  of  English  make; 
they  would  be  looted  by  the  first  party  of  soldiers  who  came 
across  them.  I  had  them  measured  the  evening  you  came  to 
my  tent,  and  carpenters  were  at  work  all  night  to  make  boxes 
that  would  contain  them.  Then  the  boxes  would  be  sewn  up 
in  matting  before  the  animals  started  this  morning,  and  marked 
with  native  marks  to  the  address  of  a  merchant  in  Jummoo. 
The  road  for  the  first  four  days  is  the  same  as  if  we  were  going 
there.  Thus  if  the  matting  is  cut,  the  native  box  will  be  seen 
inside. 

"  The  four  men  with  them  are  dismounted,  and  their  horses 


50  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

led  by  those  who  came  on  here  ahead  of  us.  Jummoo  was  the 
safest  place  that  we  could  choose  to  address  the  packages  to, 
for  Ghoolab  Singh  is  one  of  the  most  powerful  of  our  chiefs; 
the  most  powerful  perhaps.  He  is  brother  of  Dhyan  Singh, 
who  was  Runjeet  Singh's  chief  counsellor,  and  uncle  of  Heera 
Singh,  who  succeeded  his  father  after  his  murder  by  Ajeet 
Singh.  He  it  is  who  is  your  uncle's  principal  enemy,  as  it  is 
his  son  who  obtained  the  appointment  of  governor  of  the 
district.  Baggage  directed  to  a  merchant  in  Jummoo  is  there- 
fore less  likely  to  be  interfered  with  than  if  intended  for 
another  town,  as  complaints  laid  before  Ghoolab  by  an  influ- 
ential merchant  might  cause  inquiries  to  be  made  and  punish- 
ment to  be  dealt  out  to  those  who  have  interfered  with  his 
goods  in  transit.  Ghoolab' s  name  is  still  powerful,  even  with 
the  soldiers,  and  his  influence  among  the  leaders  is  quite 
sufficient  to  obtain  some  sort  of  redress  for  injuries  committed 
upon  those  wealthy  enough  to  pay  for  his  protection." 

"  It  seems  a  curious  state  of  things  to  anyone  coming  straight 
from  England,"  Percy  said,  "where  the  law  protects  everyone, 
and  where  the  richest  and  most  powerful  dare  not  wrong  the 
V__poorest  peasant." 

"That  is  good,"  the  Sikh  said  thoughtfully,  twirling  his 
moustache,  "but  in  that  case  how  can  the  rich  obtain  any 
advantage  from  their  money?  How,  indeed,  can  they  become 
rich?" 

"By  the  rents  they  obtain  from  those  who  cultivate  their 
estates;  from  mines  and  from  money  invested  in  public  funds 
or  companies." 

"And  what  do  they  find  for  their  retainers  to  do?  " 

"They  have  no  retainers;  that  is,  no  armed  retainers.  Of 
course,  they  have  servants  who  do  the  service  of  their  houses 
and  look  after  the  stables  and  gardens  and  so  on,  but  they  do 
not  carry  arms  themselves,  nor  do  any  of  their  servants." 

"  But  if  they  are  wronged  by  a  neighbour,  what  do  they  do 
then?" 


THE    SHADOW    OF    WAR  51 

"They  simply  go  to  the  courts  of  law  for  redress,  just  as 
anyone  else  would  do.  The  cases  are  heard  and  the  decisions 
given  by  the  judges,  and  the  richest  man  has  to  obey  them 
just  the  same  as  the  poorest." 

"It  sounds  very  good,"  the  Sikh  said  thoughtfully,  "but  it 
seems  to  me  that  your  country  must  be  a  very  bad  one  for 
fighting  men  and  those  who  live  by  adventure." 

"  Those  who  want  to  fight  can  enter  the  army  and  fight  the 
battles  of  their  country  abroad,  while  those  fond  of  adventure 
can  go  to  sea  or  can  visit  wild  countries,  or  can  go  out  to 
the  colonies,  where  it  is  a  hard,  rough  life,  but  where  an 
active  man  can  acquire  wealth." 

"  Now  the  sahib  had  better  lie  down  and  get  a  sleep  till  it 
is  time  to  be  moving,"  Nand  Chund  said  rising.  "My  men 
are  all  asleep  already,  it  is  getting  too  hot  even  to  talk." 


CHAPTER   III 

AT  THE   CASTLE 

FOR  four  days  the  .  journey  was  pursued  without  incident. 
They  had  brought  with  them  a  sufficient  store  of  provisions 
for  the  journey,  and  travelled  by  by-paths,  avoiding  villages 
as  much  as  possible,  halting  for  five  or  six  hours  in  the  middle 
of  the  day,  and  performing  the  greater  portion  of  the  distance 
after  sunset.  Just  as  they  had  started  for  their  evening  ride 
on  the  fifth  day  two  horsemen  overtook  them  and  reined  up  as 
they  did  so. 

"We  have  missed  our  path,"  one  said,  "can  you  tell  us 
how  far  it  is  to  a  place  where  we  can  find  shelter  for  the 
night?" 

"Ten  miles  farther  you  will  find  yourselves  in  the  main  road, 
a  mile  from  Sealkote." 

"  If  you  are  bound  thither  we  shall  be  glad  to  ride  with  you 
for  protection,"  one  said.  "There  are  many  parties  of  bud- 
mashes  about,  but  they  will  hardly  interfere  with  so  strong 
and  respectable  a  company." 

"We  travel  slowly,"  Nand  Chund  said,  "and  shall  not 
reach  Sealkote  to-night.  When  the  beasts  are  tired  we  shall 
halt." 

"  We  are  in  no  hurry,  and  do  not  care  whether  we  reach  the 
town  to-night  o*  to-morrow  morning,  therefore  if  you  have  no 

52 


AT   THE    CASTLE  53 

objection  we  will  share  your  bivouac.  Far  better  to  lose  a  few 
hours  than  to  run  the  risk  of  having  our  throats  cut." 

"As  you  will,"  Nand  Chund  said.  "You  are  very  welcome 
to  stay  with  us,  if  it  so  pleases  you." 

As  they  rode  the  strangers  chatted  with  Nand  Chund,  Percy 
reining  back  his  horse  and  riding  among  the  men.  After 
travelling  about  five  miles  Nand  Chund  ordered  a  halt,  the 
baggage  animals  were  unloaded,  a  tent  pitched,  and  two  of  his 
men  began  to  prepare  a  meal,  while  the  others  looked  to  the 
horses.  The  two  strangers  also  dismounted  and  spoke  for  a 
time  together,  then  one  said  to  the  Sikh  officer : 

"  You  will  think  that  we  do  not  know  our  own  minds,  but 
we  have  concluded  that  as  the  moon  is  bright  and  our  horses 
fairly  fresh  we  will  push  on  to  Sealkote." 

"It  is  for  you  to  decide,"  Nand  Chund  said.  "You  are 
welcome  to  stay  with  us,  and  free  to  ride  on  if  you  prefer  it." 
After  a  few  inquiries  about  the  way  the  two  men  mounted  and 
rode  on.  As  soon  as  the  sound  of  the  horses'  hoofs  became 
faint  Chund  spoke  to  one  of  his  men,  who  immediately  left 
the  party  and  glided  away  to  the  right. 

"I  have  sent  him  to  watch  them,"  Nand  Chund  said  to 
Percy;  "I  warrant  they  will  halt  before  they  are  gone  half  a 
mile.  My  man  will  keep  in  the  fields  till  he  gets  near  them, 
and  will  bring  us  word  if  they  move  on." 

"What  do  you  suspect  them  to  be?  " 

"  I  have  no  doubt  they  are  enemies.  They  may  have  been 
on  our  track  since  we  started,  or  only  for  the  last  day's  march, 
but  they  are  watching  us  no  doubt." 

"What  makes  you  think  so,  Nand  Chund?" 

"Many  things.  It  was  unlikely  that  they  would  be  upon 
this  by-path  instead  of  on  the  main  road.  That  they  should 
offer  to  stop  with  us  when  they  were  so  well  mounted,  was 
singular,  also  their  change  of  intentions  when  they  found  that 
we  were  going  to  halt.  Their  conversation  too  was  not  that 
of  honest  men." 


54  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

"What  did  they  talk  about?" 

"  They  said  they  were  coming  from  Lahore,  and  talked  of 
all  the  doings  there." 

"What  was  the  harm  in  that?  "  Percy  asked  in  surprise. 

"  Only  that  it  was  natural  when  falling  in  with  a  party  like 
ours  that  they  should  have  asked  many  questions.  Whence 
we  came,  and  whither  were  we  going?  What  merchandise  we 
•carried?  Were  we  trading  on  our  own  account,  or  were  we 
carrying  goods  for  some  trader?  How  was  it  that  I  had  such 
a  strong  armed  party  with  me  ?  These  are  the  questions  honest 
men  would  ask,  but  they  spoke  only  of  their  own  doings  and 
asked  no  word  about  ours.  I  have  no  doubt  whatever  that 
they  know  who  I  am  and  who  you  are,  and  that  all  they  really 
wanted  to  learn  was  where  we  intended  to  stop.  Now  they  are, 
I  am  certain,  watching  us,  or  probably  one  may  have  ridden 
off  to  carry  the  news  and  fetch  their  band,  while  the  other 
remains  to  see  that  we  do  not  move  our  camp." 

"What  are  you  going  to  do,  Nand  Chund?" 

"  I  shall  wait  till  Ruzam  returns.  If  they  should  have 
ridden  straight  on  we  shall  move  at  once ;  if  they  both  remain 
on  watch,  and  it  seems  that  they  are  likely  to  do  so  till  morn- 
ing, I  shall,  when  Ruzam  returns,  go  off  with  four  of  the  men, 
and  making  a  circuit  come  down  upon  them  from  behind  and 
despatch  them.  If  one  goes  and  the  other  remains  on  watch, 
Ruzam  can  be  trusted  to  give  a  good  account  of  him  before  he 
returns  here." 

"But  it  would  be  terrible  to  kill  two  men  who  have  nol; 
actually  harmed  us,"  Percy  said,  shocked  at  this,  his  first 
experience  of  the  customs  of  the  Punjaub. 

"They  have  not  done  us  much  harm  yet,"  Nand  Chund 
said  grimly;  "but  they  are  endeavouring  to  draw  us  into  an 
ambush,  which  will  cost  us  our  lives  and  you  your  liberty,  and 
perhaps  our  lord  his  fortress  and  his  life.  Therefore  I  shall 
have  no  more  hesitation  in  killing  them  than  I  should  in  shoot' 
ing  a  lurking  tiger." 


AT   THE    CASTLE  OO- 

Three  hours  passed,  and  then  Ruzam  glided  into  the  camp. 

"What  is  your  news,  Ruzam?" 

"They  have  just  left,"  the  man  said;  "I  have  been  close  to- 
them  all  the  time  listening  to  their  talk.  They  have  been 
watching  you  from  a  spot  half  a  mile  away.  They  would  have 
come  up  to  hear  what  you  were  saying,  but  neither  would  stay 
behind  alone,  saying  what  was  true  enough,  that  we  also  might 
be  watching  them,  and  if  they  separated  they  might  be  taken 
singly.  For  the  same  reason  neither  would  stay  while  the 
other  rode  forward.  I  could  have  shot  one,  but  I  could  not 
have  been  sure  of  killing  the  second  before  he  rode  off,  and  so 
thought  it  better  to  be  quiet.  At  last  they  concluded  that  you 
had  really  encamped  for  the  night,  and  that  they  could  safely 
ride  off  with  the  news.  It  was  unfortunate  that  the  moonlight 
was  so  bright,  for  it  prevented  my  crawling  up  close  enough 
to  attack  them  before  they  could  mount." 

"  Did  you  hear  what  roads  are  likely  to  be  beset?  " 

"No,  they  did  not  enter  into  particulars;  but  they  said  that 
they  would  be  sure  to  have  you,  as  there  would  be  parties  on 
every  road.  It  is  the  young  sahib  they  are  anxious  to  capture ; 
and  the  orders  were  strict  that  he  was  to  be  taken  un- 
harmed, and  that  all  the  rest  of  us  were  to  be  killed  or  taken 
prisoners." 

"We  will  delay  no  longer,"  Nand  Chund  said.  "We  will 
leave  the  tent  standing  and  put  some  fresh  wood  on  the  fire. 
They  can  be  at  Sealkote  in  an  hour,  and  perhaps  will  return 
with  a  party  without  delay.  Load  up  the  horses  and  let  us  be 
off.  Did  you  hear  them  say  where  they  have  come  from, 
Ruzam?  " 

"Yes,  sahib,  there  were  six  of  them  at  Loodiana.  They 
must  have  got  news  from  someone  in  the  fortress  of  the-  object 
of  our  journey,  they  arrived  there  on  the  day  after  you  did. 
The  morning  we  started  one  man  was  sent  off  with  the  news 
while  the  others  followed  us,  not  together  but  singly,  so  that 
every  road  we  could  take  should  be  followed  and  our  steps 


56  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

traced.  Each  night  one  man  has  been  despatched  with  the 
news  of  our  halting-places." 

"You  see,  sahib,"  Nand  Chund  said  to  Percy,  "I  was  not 
wrong  in  saying  that  our  ride  would  be  a  dangerous  one,  and 
truly  so  far  our  enemies  have  been  more  than  a  match  for  us; 
now  we  must  see  if  we  cannot  double  upon  them." 

As  soon  as  the  baggage  was  packed  the  party  mounted,  and 
to  Percy's  surprise  the  officer  led  the  way  back  along  the  road 
by  which  they  had  come. 

"It  is  of  no  use  our  going  forward,"  he  said.  "Doubtless 
they  will  take  some  little  time  in  getting  the  members  of  the 
band,  who  are  at  Sealkote,  together  and  making  a  start — we 
can  calculate  on  at  least  an  hour  for  that — but  that  only  gives 
us  three  hours'  start.  They  will,  I  hope,  make  sure  that  we 
have  continued  our  journey,  and  will  ride  on  fast  so  as  to 
overtake  us  before  daylight.  We  will  go  back  for  a  mile  and 
then  turn  off  across  the  fields  by  some  country  track,  and  we 
may  hope  before  we  have  travelled  very  far  to  hit  upon  another 
leading  in  the  direction  we  want  to  go.  We  shall  have  the 
moon  for  another  five  or  six  hours,  and  after  that  we  will  travel 
by  torchlight.  We  have  brought  some  torches  with  us.  One 
will  be  enough  to  show  us  any  ditches  or  nullahs  when  we  are 
proceeding  across  country,  when  we  are  on  a  road  we  can  do 
without  it." 

Two  of  the  men  dismounted,  and  giving  their  horses  to  their 
comrades  went  on  ahead  searching  for  some  track  across  the 
fields.  After  half  an  hour's  riding  one  was  found,  it  was  a 
mere  pathway  used  by  peasants,  and  turning  off  on  it  the  party 
followed  it  in  single  file. 

"Would  it  not  be  better  to  leave  the  baggage  behind  us," 
Percy  asked  the  officer.  "Then  we  could  go  on  at  a  gallop. 
It  would  be  a  nuisance  to  lose  all  the  things,  but  that  would 
be  of  no  odds  in  comparison  to  our  lives." 

"No,  sahib,  the  colonel's  boxes  may  be  of  importance. 
And  at  any  rate,  it  has  not  come  to  that  yet.  If  we  are 


AT   THE    CASTLE  57 

attacked  and  have  to  ride  for  it,  of  course  we  must  leave  them, 
for  whatever  may  be  in  the  boxes  the  colonel  sets  your  life  at 
a  much  higher  value.  But  I  hope  now  we  shall  outwit  them. 
The  road  we  were  travelling  will  be  known  to  them,  and  it  is 
along  that  they  will  be  gathering,  therefore  we  may  well  give 
them  the  slip.  We  will  cross  the  Chenab  at  daylight  at 
Gazerabad,  and  cross  the  Jhelum  by  boats  a  few  miles  below 
Jetalpore.  They  would  be  on  the  watch  for  us  there.  Then 
I  think  we  shall  be  safe  till  we  get  near  the  colonel's  fortress. 
That  of  course  will  be  the  most  dangerous  portion  of  the  jour- 
ney, since  they  will  know  by  whatever  road  we  travel  it  is  for 
that  point  we  are  making.  We  will  halt  in  a  grove,  and  I  shall 
send  t\vo  of  the  men  off  on  horseback  by  different  roads.  We 
may  calculate  that  one  of  them  at  least  will  reach  the  fortress, 
and  the  colonel  will  then  send  out  a  force  sufficient  to  beat  off 
any  attack  likely  to  be  made,  for,  as  our  strength  is  known, 
some  thirty  or  forty  men  will  have  been  considered  ample  for 
the  work." 

"That  seems  a  very  good  plan,"  Percy  agreed.  "I  wonder 
that  they  should  dare  to  venture  into  my  uncle's  district,  where, 
as  you  say,  the  people  are  all  favourable  to  him." 

"  There  are  many  valleys  and  nullahs  in  which  they  could 
conceal  themselves;  besides,  much  of  the  country  is  unculti- 
vated, and  they  could  lie  hid  for  a  fortnight  without  much  fear 
of  being  discovered  if  they  took  provisions  with  them  and 
encamped  near  water." 

All  night  the  journey  continued.  Percy  was  so  sleepy  that 
he  several  times  dozed  off  in  his  seat,  and  woke  with  a  start, 
finding  himself  reeling  in  the  saddle.  At  times,  however,  he 
was  obliged  to  pay  attention  to  their  course,  for  it  was  often 
a  mere  track,  that  even  the  men  walking  ahead  had  difficulty 
in  following.  There  were  deep  nullahs  to  be  crossed,  and 
once  or  twice  wide  water-courses,  dry  now,  but  covered  with 
stones  and  boulders.  These  were,  as  Nand  Chund  told  him, 
foaming  torrents  in  the  wet  season,  and  at  such  times  quite 


58  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

impassable.  Occasionally  the  track  turned  off  in  a  direction 
quite  different  to  that  they  were  following;  and  they  then 
directed  their  course  by  the  stars,  a  man  going  ahead  with  a 
torch  until  they  came  again  upon  cultivated  ground  and  struck 
upon  a  path  leading  in  the  right  direction. 

The  two  rivers  were  crossed  safely,  and  they  then  rode  north 
for  two  days. 

Percy  felt  thankful  indeed  when,  after  pushing  on  all  that 
last  night,  Nand  Chund,  upon  arriving  at  a  clump  of  bushes, 
decided  to  halt  just  as  daylight  was  beginning  to  break  in  the 
«ast.  The  two  best-mounted  men  received  their  instructions, 
and  at  once  rode  on  at  a  brisk  pace,  while  the  rest  entered 
the  bushes  and  dismounted,  the  men  with  their  long  knives 
clearing  a  space  sufficiently  large  for  the  party.  A  fire  was  lit 
and  food  cooked,  then  four  men  were  placed  on  watch  at  the 
edge  of  the  thicket,  and  the  rest  threw  themselves  down  to 
sleep.  It  seemed  to  Percy  that  he  had  hardly  closed  his  eyes, 
but  he  knew  he  must  have  slept  for  some  hours,  from  the  heat 
of  the  sun  blazing  down  upon  him,  when  Nand  Chund  put  his 
hand  on  his  shoulder  and  said : 

"All  is  well,  sahib.  A  party  of  horse  are  approaching,  and 
I  doubt  not  that  the  colonel  is  with  them." 

Percy  leapt  to  his  feet  and  made  his  way  to  the  edge  of  the 
thicket. 

"They  are  our  men,"  Nand  Chund  said;  "they  are  riding 
in  regular  lines."  A  minute  or  two  later  he  added,  "There  is 
the  colonel  himself  at  their  head — the  officer  with  the  white 
horse-hair  crest  to  his  helmet." 

Unless  so  informed  Percy  would  have  had  no  idea  that  the 
tall  bearded  man  in  silk  attire  was  an  Englishman,  until  he 
leapt  from  his  horse  beside  him,  exclaiming  heartily,  "  Well, 
Percy,  my  boy,  I  am  glad  indeed  to  see  you  safe  and  sound. 
I  have  been  in  a  fidget  about  you  for  the  last  week;  for  I  have 
had  news  that  bands  of  strange  horsemen  had  been  seen  on 
the  roads,  and  there  were  reports  that  some  of  them  had 


AT   THE    CASTLE  59 

entered  my  district,  though  where  they  had  gone  none  knew. 
However,  all  is  well  that  ends  well.  I  was  delighted  when 
two  fellows  rode  into  the  fortress  this  morning,  within  a  few 
minutes  of  each  other,  with  the  news  that  you  had  got  thus 
far,  and  were  hiding  here  till  I  came  out  to  fetch  you-.  You 
may  imagine  we  were  not  long  in  getting  into  the  saddle. 
Well,  this  has  been  a  rough  beginning,  lad;  but  your  troubles 
are  at  an  end  now.  You  may  be  sure  that  there  is  no  foe 
near  at  hand  who  will  venture  to  try  conclusions  with  four 
hundred  of  the  best  troops  in  the  Punjaub.  I  hardly  fancied 
that  you  would  have  come,  Percy.  I  don't  know  when  I  have 
been  so  pleased  as  when  I  received  the  letter  from  Mr.  Fullar- 
ton  at  Loodiana,  saying  that  you  had  come  out  with  him,  and 
would  probably  be  there  in  a  few  days." 

"  I  was  very  glad  to  come,  uncle, — very.  It  did  not  take 
me  five  minutes  to  decide  about  coming  after  I  had  read  your 
letter." 

"You  are  something  like  what  I  expected  you  to  be,  Percy, 
although  not  altogether.  I  fancied  that  you  would  be  more 
like  what  your  father  was  at  your  age.  It  seems  but  yesterday 
that  we  were  boys  together,  though  it  is  so  many  years  ago. 
But  I  don't  see  the  likeness — I  think  you  are  more  like  what 
I  was.  Your  father,  dear  good  fellow  as  he  was,  always  looked 
as  if  he  had  a  stiff  collar  on.  Even  from  a  boy  he  was  all  for 
method  and  order;  and  no  doubt  he  was  right  enough,  though 
I  hated  both.  Well,  you  may  as  well  mount,  and  you  can  tell 
me  about  your  voyage  as  we  ride  back.  You  have  done  your 
work  well,  Nand  Chund.  I  knew  that  I  could  safely  trust 
the  boy  in  your  charge.  Have  you  been  troubled  by  the 
way?  " 

"Only  once  have  we  absolutely  seen  them,  sahib;  "  and  the 
officer  gave  the  colonel  a  short  account  of  the  incident  of  the 
pretended  travellers. 

"So  they  were  at  Loodiana  the  day  after  you  arrived? 
Then  someone  must  have  sent  off  word  of  the  object  of  your 


60  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

mission  as  soon  as  you  started.  We  must  find  out  these 
traitors,  Nand  Chund,  and  make  an  end  of  them.  However, 
we  will  talk  that  over  afterwards." 

By  this  time  the  horses  had  been  led  out  from  the  thicket. 
The  colonel  watched  Percy  critically  as  he  mounted,  and 
nodded  approvingly  as  he  sprang  into  the  saddle. 

"That  is  right,  lad;  I  see  that  you  are  at  home  on  a  horse. 
We  shall  make  a  Sikh  of  you  before  long.  How  have  you  got 
on  with  him,  Nand  Chund  ?  You  must  have  been  quite  in  a 
fog,  Percy,  as  to  what  was  going  on.  Your  tongue  must  have 
had  quite  a  holiday  since  you  left  Loodiana." 

"The  young  sahib  speaks  Punjaubi  very  fairly,  colonel,  and 
we  had  no  difficulty  in  understanding  each  other." 

"Speaks  Punjaubi !  "  the  colonel  repeated.  "You  must  be 
dreaming,  Nand  Chund.  How  can  the  boy  have  learned  the 
language.  I  suppose  you  mean  Hindustani — though  how  he 
could  have  picked  that  up  in  an  English  school  is  more  than 
I  can  understand.  There  was  no  such  thing  heard  of  when  I 
was  a  boy." 

"It  is  Punjaubi  he  speaks,  colonel,  though  he  told  me  he 
could  also  make  himself  understood  in  Hindustani,"  the  officer 
said  in  the  native  language. 

"Nand  Chund  tells  me  that  you  can  speak  Punjaubi,  Percy, 
but  in  truth  I  can  hardly  believe  him." 

"  I  don't  speak  it  very  well  yet,  uncle,  but  I  can  get  on  with 
it.  I  worked  five  or  six  hours  a  day  on  the  voyage  out  with 
a  Punjaubi  servant  of  Mr.  Fullarton.  I  thought  it  would  be 
of  great  use  for  me  to  know  something  of  the  language  when  I 
arrived.  As  to  the  Hindustani,  I  have  had  a  master  at  school 
twice  a  week  for  more  than  a  year  before  I  sailed." 

"  I  am  delighted,  Percy.  You  must  have  worked  hard  indeed 
to  speak  as  fluently  as  you  do,  and  it  does  you  tremendous 
credit.  I  own  I  should  never  have  thought  of  spending  my 
time  on  board  ship  learning  a  language.  You  do  take  after 
your  father  more  than  me,  after  all;  it  is  just  the  sort  of  thing 


AT   THE    CASTLE  61 

he  would  have  done.  Well,  I  am  pleased,  boy, — very  pleased. 
Mr.  Fullarton  spoke  in  very  favourable  terms  about  you  when 
he  wrote.  I  wondered  then  how  he  should  know  anything 
about  a  boy  of  your  age  who  chanced  to  be  a  fellow-pas- 
senger, but  thought  it  was  merely  a  bit  of  civility  on  his 
part,  and  meant  nothing.  I  suppose  he  heard  from  his  servant 
that  you  were  working  up  the  language  with  him,  and  so  came 
to  take  an  interest  in  you.  Perhaps  you  sat  near  him  at 
table?" 

"No,  uncle;  I  took  my  meals  with  the  second  and  third 
officers  and  the  midshipmen.  The  captain  offered  to  put  me 
there ;  it  was  so  much  nicer  than  going  among  a  lot  of  grown-up 
people,  and  of  course  it  gave  me  a  great  deal  more  time  for 
work.  But  towards  the  end  of  the  voyage  I  came  to  know 
most  of  the  passengers.  Mr.  Fullarton  was  the  first  to  be 
kind  to  me.  He  used  very  often  to  come  forward  to  where  I 
was  working  with  Ram  Singh — that  was  the  name  of  his  ser- 
vant,— and  he  would  explain  things  about  the  grammar  that 
I  could  not  understand  and  Ram  Singh  could  not  tell  me,  for 
of  course  he  didn't  know  anything  about  grammar." 

"Well,  you  can  ride,  you  can  talk  Punjaubi  fairly,  and  you 
know  something  of  Hindustani.  That  is  a  capital  beginning, 
Percy.  Have  you  any  other  accomplishments?  " 

"Nothing  that  I  know  of,"  Percy  laughed,  "except  that  on 
the  way  out  I  practised  pistol-shooting;  and  before  we  got  to 
Calcutta  there  were  not  many  on  board  who  shot  much  better. 
Mr.  Fullarton  made  me  practise  from  the  first,  and  told  me 
that  to  shoot  straight  was  one  of  the  most  valuable  accomplish- 
ments I  could  have  in  India." 

"He  was  perfectly  right,"  the  colonel  said  heartily.  "A 
quick  eye  and  hand  with  the  pistol  are  invaluable,  especially 
in  a  country  like  this,  where  assassination  is  the  most  ordinary 
way  of  getting  rid  of  an  enemy.  My  pistol  has  saved  my  life 
several  times,  and  the  fact  that  I  am  a  dead  shot  has  no  doubt 
saved  me  from  many  other  such  attempts.  Even  the  most 


62  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

desperate  men  hesitate  at  undertaking  a  job  which  involves 
certain  death ;  for  even  if  they  planted  a  dagger  between  my 
shoulders  before  I  had  time  to  lay  hands  on  the  butt  of  a 
pistol,  they  would  be  killed  to  a  certainty  by  my  men.  You. 
must  keep  that  up,  lad,  till  you  can  hit  an  egg  swinging  at  the 
end  of  a  string  nine  times  out  of  ten  at  twelve  paces.  It  is 
very  seldom  that  you  want  to  use  a  pistol  at  a  longer  range 
than  that.  Now,  am  I  at  all  like  what  you  expected  me  to 
be?" 

"  I  don't  think  I  had  formed  any  distinct  idea  about  you, 
uncle.  Father  said  you  were  taller  than  he  was  and  bigger, 
and  of  course  I  expected  you  to  be  very  sunburnt  and  brown, 
and  that  perhaps  you  would  have  a  beard,  as  most  of  the  Sikhs 
have  beards;  I  thought  too,  that  perhaps  you  would  dress  to 
some  extent  like  a  native;  but  I  did  not  expect  to  see  you 
altogether  like  a  Sikh." 

"We  all  adopted  the  native  costume  to  a  great  extent,"  the 
colonel  said.  "  Of  course  there  was  always  a  prejudice  against 
us,  and  anything  like  a  European  dress  would  have  constantly 
kept  it  before  the  minds  of  our  men  that  we  were  foreigners. 
The  dress,  too,  was  lighter  and  more  easy  than  our  own  in  a 
climate  like  this,  and  I  don't  think  anyone  could  deny  for 
a  moment  that  it  is  a  good  deal  more  picturesque." 

The  colonel  was  indeed  in  the  complete  garb  of  a  Sikh 
warrior  of  rank.  On  his  head  he  wore  a  close-fitting  steel 
cap,  beautifully  inlaid  with  gold.  A  slender  shaft  rose  three 
inches  above  the  top,  and  in  this  was  inserted  a  plume  of  white 
horse-hair,  that  fell  down  over  the  helmet.  From  the  lower 
edge  of  the  steel  cap  fell  a  curtain  of  light  steel  links,  cover- 
ing the  forehead  down  to  the  eyebrows,  and  then  falling  so  as 
to  shield  the  cheeks  and  the  neck  behind.  In  front  was  a 
steel  bar,  inlaid  like  the  helmet.  This  was  now  pushed  up, 
but  when  required  it  could  be  lowered  down  over  the  nose 
almost  to  the  chin,  so  as  to  afford  protection  against  a  sword- 
stroke  from  the  side.  A  robe  of  thickly  quilted  silk  fell  from 


AT  THE   CASTLE  63 

the  neck  to  the  knees.  Round  the  body  were  four  pieces  of 
armour,  of  work  similar  to  the  helmet.  One  of  these  formed 
a  back,  and  the  other  the  front  piece,  two  smaller  plates  cut 
out  under  the  arm  connected  these  together. 

Across  the  back  was  slung  a  shield  of  about  eighteen  inches 
in  diameter,  also  of  steel  inlaid  with  gold.  In  action  it  was 
held  in  the  left  hand,  and  not  upon  the  arm  like  those  in  use 
in  Europe  in  the  middle  ages.  The  arms  themselves  were 
protected  by  steel  pieces  from  the  elbow  to  the  wrist,  the 
hands  being  covered  by  fine  but  strong  link-mail,  kept  in 
place  by  straps  across  the  palm  of  the  hand.  The  legs  were 
covered  by  long  tightly-fitting  white  trousers  reaching  to  the 
feet.  The  sash  of  purple  with  gold  embroidery  bristled  with 
pistols  and  daggers.  All  the  armour,  although  strong  and 
capable  of  resisting  a  sword-cut  or  a  spear-thrust,  was  very 
light,  the  steel  being  of  the  finest  temper  and  quality.  The 
costume  was  an  exceedingly  picturesque  one,  and  showed  off 
the  colonel's  powerful  figure  to  advantage. 

The  officers  were  very  similarly  attired.  The  soldiers  were 
for  the  most  part  dressed  in  chain-armour,  with  shields  larger 
than  those  of  the  officers,  but  of  leather  with  metal  bosses; 
some  wore  turbans,  others  steel  caps. 

"What  do  you  think  of  my  men,  Percy?"  the  colonel 
asked,  as  he  reined  in  his  horse  and  watched  the  horsemen 
trot  past  four  abreast. 

"They  are  fine-looking  men,"  Percy  said  doubtfully,  "but 
they  would  look  a  great  deal  better  if  they  were  all  dressed 
alike." 

"  Ah !  that  is  your  European  notion,  Percy.  No  doubt  to 
an  English  eye,  accustomed  to  our  cavalry,  they  do  look  rather 
3.  scratch  lot,  but  dress  makes  no  difference  when  it  comes  to 
fighting.  From  the  first  the  Maharajah's  European  officers 
had  to  abandon  the  idea  of  introducing  anything  like  uni- 
formity in  dress.  The  men  clothe  themselves;  and  in  addi- 
tion to  the  expense  it  would  be  to  them  to  get  new  clothes  on 


64  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

joining,  their  feeling  of  independence  would  revolt  against 
any  dictation  on  such  a  subject.  It  has  all  along  been  very 
difficult  to  get  them  to  submit  to  anything  like  European 
discipline,  but  to  attempt  to  introduce  uniformity  of  garb 
would  produce  a  revolution  among  them.  There  is  no  such 
thing  as  uniformity  even  in  the  attire  of  the  most  highly- 
favoured  troops  of  the  native  princes,  and  the  appearance  of 
their  escort  and  retinue  is  varied  in  the  extreme. 

"  Richly-dressed  nobles  ride  side  by  side  with  men  whose 
armour  and  trappings  have  come  down  to  them  from  many 
generations.  Some  carry  lances,  some  matchlocks,  some  only 
swords;  some  are  pretty  nearly  naked  to  the  waist,  others  are 
swathed  up  to  the  eyes  in  gaudy-coloured  robes.  So  that  a 
man's  arms  are  serviceable,  and  he  is  willing  to  learn  his  drill, 
is  obedient  to  discipline  and  of  good  behaviour,  I  care  noth- 
ing for  his  clothes;  though  as  far  as  I  can  I  discourage  any 
from  dressing  more  showily  than  the  rest,  and  of  course  insist 
that  all  are  fairly  dressed  in  accordance  with  their  notions. 
You  must  remember  that  until  the  days  of  Marlborough  there 
were  nothing  like  uniforms  in  European  armies,  especially 
among  the  cavalry.  And  even  in  his  time  there  was  very 
considerable  latitude  in  the  matter  of  dress." 

"I  suppose  I  shall  have  to  dress  in  Sikh  fashion,  uncle?" 
"It  will  be  certainly  better,  lad.  Indoors  their  dress  is 
easy  and  flowing,  and  you  will  find  it  comfortable.  Your 
European  dress  will  at  once  mark  you  out,  and  should  there 
be  troubles  your  chances  of  escape  would  be  vastly  greater  in 
Sikh  costume,  than  in  anything  which  would  at  once  point 
you  out  as  a  European.  In  the  course  of  a  year  you  will 
speak  the  language  like  a  native,  for,  as  you  may  suppose,  you 
will  hear  nothing  else,  except  when  we  are  alone  together. 
And  indeed  to  me  Punjaubi  now  comes  much  more  naturally 
than  English.  If  it  were  not  that  I  have  always  made  a  point 
of  getting  a  box  of  European  books  sent  up  from  Calcutta 
whenever  an  opportunity  offers,  I  should  almost  have  forgotten 


AT    THE    CASTLE  65 

my  native  tongue.  There,  that  is  the  fortress.  It  looks  fairly 
strong,  does  it  not?  " 

They  had  just  ascended  a  brow,  and  as  they  did  so  the 
stronghold  came  suddenly  into  view.  It  stood  on  a  rocky 
spur,  running  out  from  the  hills  behind  it.  This  broke  sud- 
denly away  at  the  foot  of  the  walls,  and  seemed  to  Percy  to  be 
almost  perpendicular  on  three  sides. 

"  It  looks  tremendously  strong,  uncle.  Surely  nobody  could 
scale  those  rocks?  " 

"No;  except  by  treachery  it  is  impregnable  on  the  sides 
you  see,  or  at  any  rate  on  two  of  them.  On  the  side  facing 
us  it  is  very  steep,  indeed  almost  inaccessible.  There  is  a 
footpath  cut  for  the  most  part  in  the  rock.  It  zigzags  up  the 
face,  and  there  is  a  small  gateway,  though  you  can't  see  it 
from  here,  by  which  the  fortress  is  entered  from  this  side. 
There  are  three  places  that  can  only  be  -climbed  by  ladders, 
and  when  these  are  removed  nothing,  unless  provided  with 
wings,  could  get  up.  The  weakest  side  is,  of  course,  that 
which  we  don't  see,  where  the  spur  runs  up  to  the  hills 
behind.  I  have  taken  every  pains  to  strengthen  it  there, 
and  have  blasted  a  cut  thirty  feet  deep  and  as  many  wide, 
at  the  foot  of  the  wall  across  the  shoulder.  I  have,  in- 
deed, very  largely  added  to  the  strength  of  the  whole  place 
since  I  was  first  appointed  governor  ten  years  ago.  At  that 
time  I  only  resided  here  occasionally,  sometimes  moving  about 
in  the  towns  and  villages,  at  others  absent,  often  for  months, 
with  my  three  regiments,  on  some  military  expedition.  But 
I  foresaw  that  there  would  be  troubles  at  Runjeet  Singh's 
death,  and  quietly  and  steadily  piepared  for  them. 

"  I  knew  the  weak  points  of  the  place.  For  when  I  was  first 
appointed,  my  predecessor,  as  is  often  the  case,  declined  to 
hand  over  the  fortress  to  me,  and  I  had  to  capture  it.  It  was 
no  easy  matter  then,  but  I  managed  one  night  with  a  hundred 
picked  men  to  scale  the  rock  unnoticed,  when  a  storm  was 
raging.  Then  we  threw  up  a  rope  with  a  grapnel  to  the  top 


66  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

of  the  wall,  drew  up  a  rope-ladder,  and  so  got  a  footing;  we 
crept  along  the  walls  with  scarcely  any  opposition,  for  the 
sentries  were  cowering  under  shelter  of  the  parapet,  and  we 
reached  the  gate  before  the  garrison  had  taken  the  alarm. 
The  rest  was  easy;  we  threw  open  the  gates,  fired  a  couple  of 
guns  as  a  signal,  and  the  main  body  of  my  troops,  who  had 
moved  unperceived  to  a  point  a  quarter  of  a  mile  away,  hur- 
ried up,  and  we  were  speedily  masters  of  the  place.  I  at  once 
resolved  that  I  would  do  my  best  to  avoid  being  turned  out  in 
so  summary  a  manner.  So  far  I  have  succeeded.  There  have 
been  two  or  three  attempts  to  take  the  place,  but  none  of  them 
were  serious,  for  I  take  care  that  my  sentries  don't  sleep  at 
their  posts,  and  it  would  need  a  regular  siege  by  a  large  force 
to  take  it;  I  mean,  of  course,  by  Sikhs.  The  British  have 
proved  over  and  over  again  that  rock  fortresses  considered 
impregnable  can  be  taken  without  serious  difficulty  by  deter- 
mined men." 

"How  large  is  it,  uncle?" 

"  It  is  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  end  to  end,  and  at 
the  widest  point  it  is  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  yards  from 
wall  to  wall.  So  there  is  plenty  of  room  not  only  for  my 
troops  but  for  a  large  number  of  fugitives  from  the  country 
round.  1  have  grain  stored  away  sufficient  for  a  year,  even  if 
the  strength  of  the  garrison  was  doubled.  Water  was  of 
course  the  principal  difficulty.  There  were  some  large  tanks 
when  I  took  possession,  but  I  have  greatly  added  to  them. 
Of  course  all  the  water  that  falls  on  the  roofs  in  the  rainy 
season  is  carefully  collected  and  stored;  and  in  addition,  I 
have  constructed  troughs  to  a  streamlet  six  miles  away  in  the 
hills.  This  brings  me  down  sufficient  water  for  our  daily  needs 
without  touching  the  supply  in  the  tanks,  which  is  stringently 
preserved  in  case  of  a  siege,  for,  of  course,  an  enemy  would 
as  a  first  step  intercept  my  supply  from  the  hills. 

"The   supply  in  the  tanks  is   certainly  ample  for  many 


AT  THE   CASTLE  67 

months,  and  would  of  course  be  replenished  in  the  wet  season, 
so  I  have  no  anxiety  on  that  head.  I  always  keep  a  consid- 
erable amount  of  salt  in  the  magazines,  and  on  the  approach 
of  an  enemy,  cattle  would  be  driven  in,  slaughtered,  and  salted ; 
but  in  fact  meat  is  a  matter  of  minor  necessity  here,  for 
although  the  Sikhs  have  no  objection  to  eat  it,  they  can  do 
very  well  without  it,  and  are  perfectly  content  if  they  can  get 
plenty  of  the  native  grain  and  a  proportion  of  rice." 

The  road  wound  up  the  valley  under  the  foot  of  the  rock  on 
which  the  fortress  stood,  and  then  climbed  the  hill  by  zigzags 
cut  at  an  easy  gradient  until  it  reached  the  level  of  the  shoul- 
der, which  it  followed  down  to  the  castle,  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
away.  The  wall  on  this  side  was  much  higher  than  that  on 
the  other  faces.  The  gate  was  flanked  by  two  massive  stone 
towers,  and  two  others  rose  at  the  angles.  A  drawbridge  was 
lowered  as  they  approached,  and  over  this  they  crossed  the 
deep  fosse  that  had  been  cut  by  the  colonel.  Ten  cannon 
were  placed  on  the  wall  and  four  on  each  of  the  towers. 

"It  would  be  a  hard  nut  to  crack,  Percy,"  his  uncle  said, 
as  they  rode  into  the  gateway. 

"  It  would  indeed,  uncle.  No  wonder  you  have  been  left 
here  unmolested." 

Passing  through  the  gateway  they  were  faced  by  another  wall, 
which  extended  in  a  semicircle  in  front  of  them.  Four  cannon 
frowned  down  on  the  gateway  from  embrasures,  and  the  para- 
pet, which  was  very  high,  was  closely  loop-holed  for  musketry. 
Turning  to  the  right,  they  rode  between  the  end  of  this  wall 
and  the  main  one,  and  then  turning  sharply  to  the  left  rode 
into  the  town.  Percy  had  expected  to  find  only  a  barrack, 
but  there  was  a  main  street  with  shops  on  either  side,  where 
commodities  of  all  kinds  were  sold.  Behind  these  were  the 
buildings  where  the  troops  were  lodged,  and  in  the  centre  of 
the  town  stood  a  large  and  handsome  stone  building,  the  resi- 
dence of  the  governor.  Everything  was  scrupulously  clean 


68 


THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 


and  tidy.  Women -were  drawing  water  from  conduits,  chil- 
dren played  about  unconcernedly,  and  everything  looked  so 
quiet  and  peaceful  that  Percy  wondered  vaguely  whether  the 
inhabitants  shared  to  any  extent  in  the  doubts  that  his  uncle 
had  expressed  to  him  of  his  ability  to  hold  the  place  against 
such  a  force  as  might  possibly  be  brought  against  it. 


1'liKCY    AND    HIS    UNCLE   ENTER   THE   ZENANA. 


CHAPTER  IV 

A   RAID    FROM   THE   HILLS 

AS  the  party  rode  through  the  street  the  people  looked  up 
in  surprise  at  the  young  European  riding  by  the  side  of 
the  governor.  It  was  evident  that  though  the  secret  of  his 
coming  had  reached  the  ear  of  an  enemy,  it  had  been  well 
preserved  in  the  town. 

On  his  alighting  at  the  entrance  to  the  governor's  house  the 
colonel  said,  "  Now  I  will  introduce  you  to  my  wife.  She  is 
most  anxious  to  see  you,  and  is  quite  delighted  at  the  thought 
of  your  coming." 

Passing  through  the  great  hall,  where  the  colonel  received 
visitors,  listened  to  complaints,  and  administered  justice, 
they  passed  through  a  richly-carved  doorway  into  an  inner 
room.  Here  was  a  table  and  writing-desk,  with  a  large  Eng- 
lish arm-chair. 

"  I  never  could  fall  into  the  Eastern  custom  of  sitting  tailor- 
ways  and  writing  on  a  pad  on  my  knees,  but  have  kept,  as 
you  see,  to  a  table  and  comfortable  chair.  This  we  may  call 
my  private  business  sanctum." 

Drawing  aside  a  heavy  curtain  in  one  corner  of  the  room 
he  entered  an  ante-chamber,  whose  walls  were  covered  with 
elaborate  carvings.  A  cushioned  divan  ran  round  it,  and 
there  was  a  thick  carpet  over  the  greater  part  of  the  marble 
floor.  Another  curtain  was  drawn  aside,  and  they  then 
entered  the  principal  room  of  the  zenana.  A  lady  some  forty 

69 


70  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

years  old  was  seated  on  a  divan,  and  rose  at  once  as  they 
came  in. 

"Welcome  back,  my  lord,"  she  said  to  the  colonel.  "I 
knew  that  with  the  force  you  took  with  you  there  was  no 
reason  for  anxiety,  but  in  spite  of  that  I  was  anxious.  I 
always  am  when  you  go  beyond  the  walls.  One  can  never  say 
what  will  happen." 

"  You  are  a  great  deal  more  nervous  for  me  than  you  are  for 
yourself,"  the  colonel  said.  "This  is  my  nephew,  who  has 
come  so  many  thousand  miles  to  be  with  us.  You  can  speak 
to  him  in  your  own  tongue,  for  I  find,  to  my  astonishment, 
that  he  has  studied  it  on  board  ship  during  the  voyage  to  such 
good  purpose  that  he  can  get  along  very  fairly." 

"I  am  glad  of  that,"  she  said,  holding  her  hand  out  to 
Percy.  "  I  have  been  wondering  how  I  should  talk  with  you 
when  my  lord  is  not  here  to  interpret,  and  how  I  should  be 
able  to  manage  things  when  you  understood  nothing  that  was 
said.  I  am  very  glad  you  have  come.  I  have  no  children, 
and  hitherto  my  lord  has  not  cared  to  follow  our  custom  and 
to  adopt  one.  Not  that  I  have  been  lonely  for  eight  years, 
for  since  the  death  of  Runjeet  Singh  my  lord  has  always  dwelt 
with  me,  and  I  have  never  been  alone,  except  when  he  made 
short  tours  through  his  district.  Now  you  will  be  as  a  son; 
and  even  when  he  is  away  I  shall  feel  that  there  is  someone 
whom  I  can  trust  entirely  to  look  after  the  defence  of  the 
fortress  during  his  absence." 

"  I  am  sure  there  are  numbers  of  my  officers  whom  you  can 
trust  entirely,  Mahtab." 

"There  are  many  whom  we  think  we  can  trust,  Roland;  but 
who  can  say  with  certainty?  Have  we  not  seen  at  Lahore  how 
one  after  another  proved  faithless  to  their  benefactors?  Who 
can  say  of  another  man  that  he  cannot  be  bought?  Percy  is 
young  yet — he  is  but  fifteen,  you  tell  me — but  in  another  three 
years  he  will  be  grown  up,  and  will  become  your  right  hand, 
providing  he  is  not  tired  of  our  life  here." 


A   RAID   FROM   THE   HILLS  71 

"Oh,  there  is  no  fear  of  that!"  Percy  broke  in.  "There 
will  be  heaps  for  me  to  do.  In  the  first  place,  I  have  to  learn 
to  speak  the  language  perfectly,  then  I  have  to  acquire  the 
manners  and  customs  of  the  people  and  how  to  drill  troops. 
I  hope,  uncle,  you  will  begin  soon  to  teach  me  to  ride  as  well 
as  the  Sikhs  do." 

"That  part  is  not  difficult,  Percy.  The  Sikhs  may  be 
called  a  nation  of  horsemen,  but  it  would  be  more  true  to  say 
that  they  are  a  nation  of  men  who  ride  horses.  I  admit  that 
they  have  firm  seats,  and  can  sit  their  horses  up  and  down 
hill  in  the  roughest  country,  but  as  for  taking  a  leap  either 
wide  or  high  they  would  not  be  in  it  with  English  cavalry- 
men. What  with  their  peaked-up  saddles  and  their  short 
stirrups  and  sharp  bits  they  check  a  horse's  speed  and  spoil 
his  temper,  while  they  themselves  have  no  freedom  of  action, 
and  could  no  more  stand  up  in  their  saddles  to  deliver  a 
downright  blow  than  they  could  fly.  I  had  a  fair  seat  on 
horseback  when  a  boy,  and  used  to  ride  to  hounds,  and  dur- 
ing the  short  time  I  was  in  the  army  rode  more  than  one 
steeple-chase,  but  I  was  certainly  nothing  particular  as  a 
horseman.  Here  I  am  considered  extraordinary.  I  hope  in 
a  short  time  to  make  you  as  good  a  rider  as  I  am.  Nor  will 
you  be  long  in  learning  your  drill,  for  that  is  simple  enough, 
being  little  more  than  forming  from  column  into  line  and 
from  line  into  column. 

"A  regiment  that  can  do  that  is  considered  as  fairly  com- 
petent. I  have  got  my  men  to  charge  in  fair  order,  instead 
of  each  man  going  off  at  a  bat  as  fast  as  his  horse  can  lay  foot 
to  the  ground,  and  with  that  I  am  satisfied.  It  is  useless  to 
teach  them  skirmishing  and  outpost  work,  for  these  seem  to 
come  naturally  to  them.  Therefore  all  the  drill  that  there  is 
to  be  learnt  may  be  acquired  by  a  sharp  fellow  in  the  course 
of  a  week.  Indeed,  recruits  generally  take  their  places  in  the 
ranks  at  once,  and  soon  get  hustled  into  knowing  what  they 
have  got  to  do. 


,72  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

I 

"  As  to  the  language,  I  grant  that  it  will  take  some  hard 
.work  before  you  learn  to  speak  like  a  native,  still  as  you  will 
hear  no  other  tongue  you  will  pick  it  up  naturally  and  with- 
out much  regular  work  except  to  acquire  the  niceties  of  the 
language.  Nand  Chund  speaks  it  very  correctly,  and  I  will 
give  you  into  his  special  charge,  and  if  you  talk  to  him  and 
he  corrects  you  for  a  couple  of  hours  a  day  it  will  be  quite 
enough  in  the  way  of  work.  You  may  also,  if  you  like,  go 
on  with  your  Hindustani.  I  have  a  factotum,  a  sort  of  secre- 
tary and  steward  rolled  into  one,  who  speaks  it  fluently;  and 
it  would  be  as  well  that  you  should  understand  it,  for  although 
it  would  be  no  use  to  you  here,  it  may  be  valuable  if  in  the 
future  your  lot  is  cast  in  other  parts  of  India.  You  will  every 
day  do  a  little  sword  exercise.  Nand  Chund  is  a  good  swords- 
man. When  you  have  learnt  all  he  can  teach  you  I  will  put 
you  on  with  some  others  so  that  you  may  learn  a  trick  from 
one  and  a  trick  from  another.  Your  pistol  shooting  you  will 
of  course  keep  up." 

"And  when  you  have  nothing  better  to  do,"  Mahtab  said, 
"  I  shall  always  be  glad  to  have  you  here.  Two  or  three  of 
my  maids  are  wonderful  story-tellers,  and  know  among  them, 
I  think,  all  the  stories  of  the  history  of  the  Punjaub.  I  don't 
say  that  these  are  all  strictly  true,  but  certainly  they  are  all 
founded  on  fact,  and  as  they  are  all  about  war,  and  love,  and 
stratagems,  and  wonderful  exploits,  imprisonments,  and  es- 
capes, they  will  amuse  you,  and  at  the  same  time  be  good 
practice." 

"I  shall  like  that  very  much,  aunt.  Do  you  speak  any 
English  yourself?  " 

"A  little,"  Mahtab  said.  "I  can  hardly  talk  it  at  all,  but 
my  lord  taught  me  so  that  if  he  wished  to  write  to  me,  or  I 
to  him,  we  could  send  letters  to  each  other,  and  should  these 
fall  into  others'  hands  they  would  not  be  understood." 

"We  have  found  it  useful  several  times,"  the  colonel  said. 
"She  has  sent  me  warnings  that  have  enabled  me  to  avoid 

' 


A   RAID   FROM   THE   HILLS  73 

falling  into  traps;  and  once,  that  was  before  I  was  governor 
here,  I  was  able,  when  engaged  on  an  expedition  three  hun- 
dred miles  away,  to  warn  her  of  a  plot  to  seize  her  in  her 
house.  The  messenger  I  sent  was  captured,  but  as  there  was 
nothing  upon  him  save  a  scrap  of  paper  with  a  few  words  they 
did  not  understand,  they  tossed  it  with  contempt  on  the 
ground.  My  man  was  a  sharp  fellow,  and  happened  to  be 
bare-footed,  and  presently  he  managed  to  shift  his  position  so 
as  to  stand  on  the  piece  of  paper  and  grasp  it  with  his  toes. 
He  was  led  off  a  prisoner,  but  made  his  escape  in  the  night 
and  brought  my  chit  to  my  wife,  who,  being  warned,  assem- 
bled some  friends  of  mine,  and  when  the  fellows  came  to 
carry  out  their  design  beat  them  off  handsomely." 

"  I  can  see  that  it  must  be  very  useful  in  that  way,  uncle, 
and  that  it  would  be  just  the  same  as  a  secret  code.  Does 
aunt  remain  shut  up  here,  or  does  she  go  about  as  ladies  do 
in  England?" 

"  Not  quite  so  freely  as  that,  Percy,  but  she  certainly  does 
not  remain  shut  up.  The  Sikh  women  have  much  more  lib- 
erty than  those  in  other  parts  of-  India,  and  naturally  I  have 
persuaded  her  to  adopt  our  customs  in  that  respect  to  a  con- 
siderable extent.  It  is  true  that  when  she  goes  out  she  is 
always  veiled;  but  that  is  a  concession  to  the  general  feeling. 
In  fact  her  veil  is  no  thicker  than  that  worn  by  English  ladies, 
certainly  no  thicker  than  a  widow's,  and  even  that  she  throws 
aside  when  travelling  with  me  outside  a  town." 

"  I  am  at  home  in  this  district, "  the  lady  said.  "  My  father 
was  a  rajah,  and  was  lord  of  this  territory  until  Runjeet 
Singh's  troops  overcame  him.  He  was  killed  in  the  defence 
of  his  fortress;  not  this,  but  another  thirty  miles  away.  Your 
uncle  was  in  command  of  one  of  the  regiments,  and  my 
mother  and  I  were  sent  to  Lahore  under  his  escort.  He  saw 
and  took  a  fancy  to  me.  He  was  so  kind  and  considerate  on 
the  journey,  that  in  spite  of  his  being  an  enemy  I  fell  in  love 
with  him.  When  we  arrived  in  Lahore  Runjeet  Singh  asked 


74  THROUGH  THE   SIKH  WAR 

him  what  present  he  should  make  him  for  his  good  services, 
and  when  he  said  he  should  choose  my  hand,  Runjeet  gave  it 
willingly,  and  with  it  a  jaghir — that  is,"  she  added,  seeing 
that  Percy  looked  puzzled,  "a  grant  of  land — of  a  considera- 
ble portion  of  my  father's  territory.  It  was  partly  on  that 
account  that  some  years  afterwards  he  was  chosen  as  governor 
of  the  district,  and  I  doubt  whether,  valiant  as  he  is,  he  would 
ever  have  taken  this  fortress,  had  it  not  been  that  two  of  my 
father's  old  retainers,  who  had  lived  here  for  many  years,  acted 
as  guides,  and  showed  him  a  way  up  the  rock  they  had  been 
in  the  habit  of  using  as  boys." 

"And  now,  wife,"  the  colonel  broke  in,  "we  are  both  of 
us  forgetting  that  the  boy  has  had  nothing  to  eat  this  morn- 
ing, and  I  only  swallowed  a  mouthful  before  starting." 

"It  is  all  ready,  Roland,  though  I  had  forgotten  all 
about  it." 

She  clapped  her  hands,  and  on  an  attendant  entering  gave 
orders  that  a  meal  should  be  served.  Four  young  women 
brought  in  a  table,  which  they  placed  before  her  divan.  Two 
English  chairs  were  set  beside  it,  and  in  a  minute  or  two  a 
variety  of  dishes  were  placed  on  the  table. 

"  I  suppose  you  would  rather  have  a  cut  off  a  joint,  Percy, 
than  all  these  messes,"  the  colonel  said  as  they  did  justice  to 
the  meal. 

"I  don't  know,  uncle.  They  are  very  nice,  but  I  don't 
think  there  is  so  much  flavour  in  the  meat  as  there  is  in  an 
English  joint." 

"Certainly  there  is  not,  as  a  rule,  in  India;  but  I  think 
that  our  sheep,  which  pasture  right  up  among  the  hills,  make 
as  good  mutton  as  we  have  at  home.  Still  I  don't  pretend  to 
be  a  judge;  I  own  that  I  have  quite  forgotten  the  flavour  of 
English  meat." 

The  next  six  months'  life  at  the  fortress  was,  with  one 
exception,  uneventful.  Percy  worked  steadily  at  Punjaubi, 
and  had  come  to  speak  so  well  that  he  could  pass  as  a  native 


A  RAID   FROM   THE   HILLS  75 

in  an  ordinary  conversation.  He  had  learnt  his  drill,  and  now 
took  his  place  regularly  in  the  ranks  of  the  cavalry  regiment 
as  an  under  officer.  An  hour  a  day  was  devoted  to  sword 
exercise  and  pistol  shooting,  and  for  an  hour  he  worked  at 
Hindustani.  The  hot  hours  of  the  day  were  generally  spent 
in  Mahtab's  company,  talking  to  her,  or  listening  to  the  long 
stories  of  her  attendants.  When  it  became  cool  he  mounted 
his  horse  and  rode  down  to  the  plain  with  his  uncle.  An 
escort  always  accompanied  them  to  prevent  a  surprise.  There 
he  went  through  a  course  of  horsemanship,  his  uncle  teaching 
him  to  leap  over  substitutes  for  hurdles,  or  across  a  wide 
trench  dug  out  for  the  purpose.  After  he  had  taken  these 
obstacles  a  few  times  one  of  the  best  Sikh  horsemen  would 
take  him  in  hand,  and  he  learnt  to  perform  the  feats  of  lean- 
ing over  and  picking  up  a  handkerchief  or  a  javelin  from  the 
ground,  carrying  off  a  ring  hanging  from  a  string,  or  lifting  a 
tent-peg  from  the  ground  at  the  point  of  his  spear. 

One  day  a  mounted  man  rode  in  at  full  speed.  He  dis- 
mounted at  the  door  of  the  colonel's  residence,  and  the 
servant  took  in  word  that  he  had  brought  news  of  importance 
and  begged  to  be  allowed  to  see  him  at  once.  The  man  was 
covered  with  dust,  and  had  a  bandage  stained  with  blood 
round  his  head.  He  made  his  salaam  and  then  stood  waiting 
to  be  questioned. 

"Where  do  you  come  from?  "  the  colonel  asked. 

"From  the  village  of  Jaegwar,  your  excellency." 

"What  has  happened  there?" 

"  Last  night,  sahib,  the  Turgars  from  the  hills  came  down 
upon  us.  They  burnt  the  village  and  killed  many.  They 
have  carried  off  the  cattle  and  the  women.  Three  of  the 
villages  have  been  destroyed.  We  did  our  best,  but  we  were 
taken  by  surprise,  and  but  few  of  us  escaped.  I  myself  got  a 
deep  graze  with  a  bullet  as  I  rode  off.  I  have  come  to  pray 
for  your  lordship's  protection,  and  that  it  will  please  you  to 
punish  these  robbers  and  to  recover  the  women  and  stolen 
property." 


THROUGH    THE    SIKH   WAR 

"I  will  do  what  I  can,"  the  colonel  said  quietly,  "and  can 
promise  you  that  I  will  teach  these  mountain  robbers  a  lesson. 
Whether  I  can  recover  what  they  have  carried  off  is  another 
matter."  He  struck  the  bell  and  a  servant  entered. 

"Let  this  man's  horse  be  put  in  the  stable  and  well  fed. 
See  that  he  himself  has  food,  and  tell  the  hakim  to  see  to  his 
wound.  Send  an  orderly  to  Nand  Chund,  Sohan  Verdi,  and 
Lai  Boghra,  and  beg  them  to  come  here  immediately." 

"Who  are  these  Turgars,  uncle?" 

"  They  are  a  tribe  of  hill  robbers  on  the  other  side  of  the 
river.  The  country  nominally  belongs  to  Cashmere,  but  the 
government  at  Sirinagur  has  no  more  authority  over  these  hill 
tribes  than  it  has  over  the  Highlanders  of  Scotland.  Jaegwar 
lies  forty  miles  to  the  north,  and  it  will  be  a  troublesome  busi- 
ness to  punish  these  beggars,  who  differ  in  no  respect  from  the 
Pathan  hill  tribes  along  the  whole  range  of  mountains  on  the 
northern  side  of  the  Indus.  It  is  some  years  since  I  had 
trouble  with  any  of  them,  for  on  the  last  occasion  I  punished 
them  so  heavily  they  have  been  quiet  ever  since.  No 
doubt  some  reports  have  reached  them  of  the  state  of  confu- 
sion in  the  Punjaub,  and  they  think  to  take  advantage  of  it. 
However,  they  will  find  out  their  mistake.  I  am  just  as  much 
bound  to  protect  my  district  as  if  I  were  still  a  dutiful  servant 
of  Lahore;  as  indeed  I  am,  save  in  the  matter  of  resigning  my 
governorship,  for  only  ten  days  since  I  sent  off  the  annual 
amount  at  which  the  district  was  taxed  when  I  took  charge 
of  it. 

"The  sum  is  not  a  large  one;  for  at  that  time  it  was,  I 
should  say,  the  poorest  district  in  the  Punjaub,  though  now, 
thanks  to  the  fact  that  life  and  property  are  both  secure  here, 
the  population  has  increased  fourfold,  and  the  revenue  tenfold. 
Still  I  have  no  doubt  the  amount  I  send  is  very  useful  at 
Lahore,  where  the  treasury  is  said  to  be  empty;  and  it  enables 
my  agent  there  to  urge  that  I  am  faithful  to  the  government, 
though  I  refuse  to  resign  my  post,  where  I  was  placed  by 


A    RAID    FROM    THE    HILLS  77 

Runjeet  Singh,  or  to  hand  over  the  people  he  entrusted  to  my 
care  to  men  who  seek  only  to  extort  their  last  penny  from 
them  and  to  grind  them  into  the  dust." 

The  servant  now  announced  that  the  three  officers  were  in 
attendance.  They  were  at  once  shown  in,  and  the  colonel 
informed  them  of  the  news  he  had  received.  "  These  robbers 
must  be  punished,  and  punished  heavily,"  he  went  on,  "for  if 
they  were  permitted  to  plunder  my  people  without  retaliation 
we  should  have  half  a  dozen  of  these  hill  clans  following  their 
example.  The  question  is,  what  force  can  we  send  without 
unduly  weakening  the  garrison  here?  Cavalry  would  be  of 
little  use,  but  I  will  take  fifty  troopers.  We  may  find  level 
bits  of  country  where  they  can  be  made  useful.  Of  course  I 
will  take  the  four  mountain  guns  and  the  ten  camel  guns,  and 
the  ist  Company  of  Artillery,  to  whom  they  belong.  But  our 
chief  dependence  must  be  on  infantry.  I  should  say  we  could 
spare  four  hundred  very  well;  that  will  leave  an  ample  force 
against  any  sudden  attack  on  the  place;  as  to  a  serious  expedi- 
tion, I  should  certainly  have  warning  from  Lahore  in  time  to 
return  before  it  could  arrive  here.  I  shall  myself  accompany 
the  expedition,  and,  Sohan  Verdi,  you  will  take  the  command 
of  the  fort  in  my  absence.  I  know  that  I  need  not  tell  you 
to  be  vigilant.  Nand  Chund  will  go  with  me  in  command  of 
the  troop  of  cavalry,  and  you,  Lai  Boghra,  of  the  infantry. 
Take  No.  i  and  2  Companies  of  each  of  the  regiments.  As 
Rundoop  Koor  commands  the  Camel  Battery,  he  will  of  course 
be  in  charge  of  the  guns.  Let  the  troops  cook  a  meal  at  once 
and  parade  in  an  hour." 

The  officers  saluted,  and  were  about  to  retire  when  he  added, 
"We  will  take  no  tents  with  us,  or  baggage  of  any  kind,  but  I 
will  see  that  there  is  an  ample  supply  of  grain  and  flour. 
Anything  else  that  we  may  require  we  must  take  from  the 
enemy." 

"You  will  let  me  go  with  you,  I  hope,  uncle?"  Percy 
exclaimed  as  soon  as  the  officers  had  left  the  room. 


78  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

"Certainly,  Percy,  it  will  be  a  good  introduction  for  you  to 
mountain  warfare." 

"Thank  you,  uncle;  it  will  be  a  splendid  change,  and  I 
shall  enjoy  it  immensely.  Can  these  Turgar  fellows  fight?  " 

"They  can  fight  in  their  way  well  enough,  but  they  are  no 
good  against  disciplined  troops." 

"What  is  their  way,  uncle?" 

"Their  villages  are  all  fortified,  for  when  they  are  not 
engaged  in  plundering  the  villages  of  the  plains  they  are  con- 
stantly having  petty  wars  with  each  other.  Otherwise  their 
only  idea  of  fighting  is  to  make  sudden  rushes  down  upon  a 
column  or  a  convoy  struggling  along  some  defile  or  up  some 
breakneck  path.  These  rushes  are  formidable  enough  against 
unsteady  troops,  but  disciplined  men  who  keep  their  heads 
and  show  a  bold  front  can  beat  them  off  again  easily  enough. 
I  need  not  say  that  one  has  to  be  careful  on  these  expeditions, 
for  a  man  who  straggled  away  from  the  main  body,  under  the 
belief  that  there  was  no  enemy  near,  would  be  cut  off  to  a 
certainty;  so  you  will  be  pleased  to  remember  that  whatever 
happens  you  are  to  keep  near  me.  Now  I  will  go  and  give 
orders  about  the  bullock  carts  and  the  provisions;  there  is  no 
time  to  be  lost.  You  had  better  go  in  and  see  Mahtab,  and 
tell  her  what  has  happened.  Ask  her  to  get  us  something  to 
eat  before  we  start,  and  to  see  that  provisions  for  our  private 
consumption  are  put  into  the  carts." 

Percy  was  rather  nervous  at  the  mission,  as  he  was  afraid 
that  his  aunt  would  be  alarmed  at  the  thought  of  the  colonel 
going  into  danger.  She,  however,  took  the  news  very  coolly. 

"We  had  many  such  expeditions  when  we  first  came  here," 
she  said.  "Of  course  there  is  danger,  but  it  is  very  slight; 
and  the  colonel  has  so  often  been  in  great  danger  and  has 
come  out  unharmed,  that  I  have  ceased  to  worry  about  small 
things.  The  cannon  generally  do  the  work,  and  the  tribesmen 
run  before  the  infantry  can  attack  them.  The  real  danger  is 
from  surprises,  and  your  uncle  has  "had  far  too  much  experi- 


A    RAID    FROM    THE    HILLS  71J 

ence  to  be  caught  unawares.  But  you  must  be  careful,  Percy, 
not  to  wander  away,  or  to  get  excited  and  dash  on  ahead; 
you  must  keep  near  to  him." 

"So  he  has  ordered  me,  aunt,  and  I  shall  be  very  careful." 

"I  hope  you  will,"  she  said  seriously.  "There  is  no  glory 
to  be  gained  in  these  hill  fights,  but  foolhardiness  may  very 
well  cost  anyone  his  life.  These  tribesmen  have  plenty  of 
courage,  and  are  quite  reckless  of  their  lives  if  they  can  but 
cut  down  an  enemy;  they  are  as  patient  and  watchful  as  wild 
beasts  in  pursuit  of  prey." 

The  preparations  were  soon  made;  the  troops  who  were  to 
take  part  in  the  expedition  fell  in  at  the  appointed  time,  and 
the  colonel,  after  making  a  careful  inspection  of  them,  placed 
himself  at  their  head  and  led  the  way  through  the  gate.  Percy 
rode  beside  him,  and  immediately  behind  came  the  troop  of 
cavalry;  the  artillery  followed.  The  little  guns  were  carried 
on  the  backs  of  the  camels,  the  four  mountain  guns  each 
drawn  by  as  many  animals.  The  infantry  followed  the  battery, 
twelve  bullock  carts  bringing  up  the  rear. 

"I  am  going  to  send  the  horse  straight  on,  Percy.  It  is 
pretty  certain  the  hillmen  will  have  recrossed  the  river  and  be 
up  in  their  villages  before  this;  their  tactics  are  always  to 
strike  a  blow,  collect  their  plunder,  and  be  off  again  to  the 
hills  long  before  a  force  can  be  collected  to  oppose  them. 
Still  the  cavalry  will  give  the  peasants  confidence,  and  they 
will  return  to  their  homes  when  they  hear  that  a  force,  how- 
ever small,  has  arrived  for  their  protection.  They  will  be 
there  by  midnight,  and  will  be  able  to  gather  news  from  the 
peasantry  as  to  the  villages  these  robbers  came  from,  and 
inquire  about  roads  and  guides,  so  that  when  we  get  there 
to-morrow  night  no  time  need  be  lost  about  those  matters.  It 
is  an  important  thing  with  these  hill  tribesmen  to  strike  back 
as  quickly  as  possible.  I  found  when  I  first  came  here  that 
nothing  impressed  them  so  much  as  the  promptitude  with 
which  they  were  chased  and  punished.  It  was  so  different  to 


80  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 


the  dawdling  way  in  which  native  operations  are  conducted, 
that  it  took  them  completely  by  surprise.  You  know  the  old 
saying  —  he  who  gives  quickly  gives  twice,  and  it  is  just  as 
true  of  a  blow  as  it  is  of  money." 

Half  the  journey  was  accomplished  that  day.  The  night 
was  cold  enough  to  render  blazing  fires  most  enjoyable,  and 
Percy  when  he  lay  down  felt  the  comfort  of  the  long  Sikh  coat 
made  of  sheep-skin  with  the  wool  inside,  and  the  outside 
decorated  with  patterns  worked  in  coloured  threads.  The 
following  evening  they  reached  Jaegwar,  and  the  colonel  took 
up  his  quarters  in  the  principal  house  in  the  village,  to  which 
some  of  the  inhabitants  were  now  returning.  Nand  Chund 
made  his  report  as  they  were  eating  their  supper. 

"There  were  about  five  hundred  of  them  came  down, 
colonel,  in  seven  different  parties.  As  far  as  I  can  make  out 
about  three  hundred  of  them  were  Turgars,  and  the  others 
were  Nagas  and  Kotahs.  They  killed  about  eighty  men  and 
carried  off  seventy  or  eighty  women,  and  four  or  five  hundred 
head  of  cattle.  They  burned  four  villages,  and  set  on  fire 
two  or  three  houses  here.  Fortunately  there  was  no  wind, 
and  the  flames  did  not  spread." 

"Now  as  to  the  road,  Nand  Chund." 

"The  track,  for  they  say  it  is  nothing  more  up  to  the  Turgar 
villages,  crosses  the  river  about  two  miles  north  of  this  place. 
There  are  five  villages,  all  lying  within  a  circle  of  about  three 
miles.  The  nearest  of  them  is  six  miles  beyond  the  river. 
The  fighting  force  is  put  as  from  twelve  to  fifteen  hundred, 
but  of  course  if  the  two  other  tribes  aid  them  it  would  more 
than  double  that.  There  are  some  steep  places  on  the  road, 
and  one  very  deep  and  narrow  valley,  quite  a  ravine  I  should 
say,  to  be  passed  through.  If  they  get  to  know  of  our  coming 
that  is  no  doubt  the  place  where  they  will  fight.  If  we  get 
through  there  before  they  can  gather  to  oppose  us  they  will, 
of  course,  make  their  stand  at  their  villages,  which  are  all  high 
up  on  the  hills." 


A    RAID    FROM   THE    HILLS  81 

"The  men  have  made  two  marches  of  twenty  miles  each," 
the  colonel  said ;  "  it  would  be  as  well  that  they  should  have  a 
day's  rest  before  we  advance,  for  it  will  be  a  heavy  day's 
work.  Besides,  I  would  rather  that  the  Turgars  should  hold 
the  ravine  or  any  other  strong  points  they  may  have.  Were 
we  to  march  through  these  before  they  were  ready  to  oppose 
us,  they  would  say  afterwards  that  we  could  never  have  got 
through  had  they  known  we  were  coming,  but  if  we  show  them 
that  they  can  no  longer  rely  upon  being  able  to  arrest  the 
advance  of  a  column,  it  may  be  a  long  time  before  they  ven- 
ture upon  another  raid  like  this.  However  strong  the  place 
is,  you  may  be  sure  we  shall  be  able  to  turn  them  out  of  it. 
That  rocket  tube  will  astonish  them.  Besides,  however  strong 
the  valley  is  we  ought  to  be  able  to  outflank  it.  Another 
advantage  of  a  fight  there  is,  that  if  we  turn  them  out  with  a 
good  deal  of  loss  we  shall  carry  the  villages  more  easily,  for  it 
will  shake  their  courage  if  they  find  they  are  unable  to  hold 
the  place  they  had  relied  on  as  the  main  defence  of  their 
villages." 

Accordingly  the  force  rested  the  next  day,  and  on  the 
morning  following  started  before  it  was  light,  and  reached  the 
ford  across  the  river  just  as  day  was  breaking. 

"I  have  no  doubt  they  are  prepared  for  us,"  the  colonel 
said,  as  he  watched  the  troops  and  guns  making  their  passage. 
"They  would  hardly  have  expected  that  a  force  would  make 
its  appearance  here  so  soon,  but  they  are  sure  to  have  placed 
scouts  on  the  hills  to  give  them  warning." 

"  It  is  a  wild-looking  country,"  Percy  said,  as  the  increasing 
light  enabled  them  to  see  hill  rising  behind  hill. 

"Yes.  A  battery  or  two  of  horse  artillery,  knowing  the 
country  well  and  taking  post  on  the  hills,  would  make  it  vary 
hot  for  us.  Fortunately  there  is  no  fear  of  anything  of  that 
sort.  The  wall  pieces  are  all  they  have,  besides  muskets  and 
matchlocks.  The  road  seems  to  go  straight  up  the  hill  and 
over  the  crest,"  he  went  on,  after  examining  the  ground  with 
his  field-glasses. 


82  THROUGH    THE    SIKH    WAR 

"Ah!  I  can  make  out  a  group  of  three  or  four  men,  just  to 
the  left  of  that  bush  there.  Do  you  see  the  smoke? — they 
have  just  lighted  a  fire.  That  is  a  signal,  I  have  no  doubt; 
as  you  see,  the  smoke  is  getting  thicker  and  thicker." 

Three  or  four  minutes  later  two  other  columns  of  smoke 
were  seen  rising,  one  two  or  three  miles  to  the  right,  the  other 
as  much  to  the  left. 

"  Take  a  dozen  of  your  troopers,  Nand  Chund,  and  skirmish 
up  the  hill;  a  company  of  infantry  shall  follow  you.  If  you 
find  only  a  handful  of  men  there,  drive  them  off;  if  they  are 
in  force,  get  near  enough  to  draw  their  fire  and  find  out  their 
strength,  and  then  fall  back  again  upon  the  supporting  com- 
pany. We  shall  not  be  far  behind.  But  it  is  hardly  likely 
that  you  will  be  pressed,  they  will  not  be  able  to  gather  to 
offer  any  serious  opposition  until  we  get  some  miles  further." 

The  little  party  of  cavalry  rode  on,  a  company  of  infantry 
following  close  behind  them.  Colonel  Groves  waited  until 
he  saw  the  rest  of  the  force  cross  the  ford,  and  then  set  forward 
again.  He  had  handed  his  glasses  to  Percy,  who  sat  watching 
the  advanced  party  as  it  ascended  the  hill.  The  horsemen 
had  scattered  along  the  hillside,  and  were  several  hundred 
yards  ahead  of  the  infantry. 

"They  are  firing,  uncle,"  he  exclaimed  presently.  "  I  don't 
see  the  smoke,  but  I  heard  the  sound  of  shots.  There !  I  saw 
a  puff  of  smoke  just  now." 

"How  many  guns  did  you  hear,  Percy?" 

"Five  or  six;  I  should  say  that  is  about  all  there  are.  I 
saw  three  standing  up,  and  there  may  have  been  two  or  three 
more  engaged  in  making  the  fire." 

"  It  is  hardly  likely  that  they  would  have  more  than  five  or 
six  men  on  watch.  Even  if  they  knew  yesterday  that  we  had 
come  to  the  village,  they  would  hardly  keep  more  than  a 
lookout  here." 

This  was  evidently  the  case,  as  the  horsemen  were  seen  to 
pass  over  the  crest,  and  one  of  them  soon  reappeared  and 
galloped  down  the  hill. 


A    RAID    FROM   THE    HILLS  83 

"Nand  Chund  reports,  Colonel,"  he  said  when  he  arrived 
at  the  head  of  the  column,  "there  were  but  four  men,  they 
fired  a  few  shots  at  us.  When  we  reached  the  top  of  the  hill 
they  were  half-way  down  the  other  side.  There  is  a  good  deal 
of  bush  and  some  wood  down  there.  Nand  Chund  says  that 
he  will  not  advance  further  till  the  company  in  support  joins 
him,  as  there  might  be  a  force  hidden  there." 

"  Quite  right.  Tell  him  that  at  any  rate  he  is  not  to  mount 
the  next  hill  until  we  come  up." 

When  the  force  arrived  at  the  crest  they  saw  Nand  Chund 
and  the  footmen  drawn  up  beyond  the  bush  in  the  hollow. 

"It  is  a  good  deal  steeper  beyond,  uncle." 

"Yes,  a  great  deal  steeper.  There  will  be  some  little  diffi- 
culty in  getting  our  guns  up;  and  if  I  mistake  not,  there  is  a 
body  of  men  on  the  opposite  crest." 

A  trooper  was  sent  on  to  Nand  Chund  telling  him  to  ad- 
vance no  farther  until  the  whole  force  came  up.  When  the 
force  was  united  the  colonel  said :  "  This  hill  is  too  steep  for 
you  to  act  with  effect,  Nand  Chund.  Ride  along  the  valley 
with  the  troop  for  a  mile  or  so,  climb  the  hillside,  and  then 
come  back  along  the  crest  till  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of 
them,  and  as  soon  as  you  see  them  begin  to  fall  back  before 
our  advance,  charge  and  take  them  in  flank  if  they  are  not 
too  strong,  and  chase  them  down  the  other  side,  but  do  not 
pursue  too  far." 

The  cavalry  at  once  rode  off.  Two  companies  of  infantry 
were  then  thrown  forward  in  skirmishing  order,  the  rest  of 
the  force  followed  two  or  three  hundred  yards  behind  them. 
When  the  skirmishers  were  half-way  up  the  hill  the  enemy 
opened  fire.  Orders  had  been  given  to  them  to  pay  no  atten- 
tion to  this,  but  to  keep  their  muskets  slung  behind  them,  and 
to  press  forward.  When  they  arrived  within  a  hundred  yards 
of  the  enemy  they  were  to  lie  down  and  return  their  fire  until 
the  column  came  up.  The  order  was  carried  out;  but  just  as 
the  colonel  reached  their  line  he  saw  Nand  Chund's  horse- 


84  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

men  coming  along  the  top  at  full  speed.  "  Forward,  men,  at 
the  double!"  he  shouted;  and  the  troops,  leaping  to  their 
feet,  climbed  rapidly  up  the  hill.  But  it  was  over  before  they 
reached  the  top.  The  hillmen  had  not  awaited  the  arrival  of 
the  cavalry,  but  had  fled  down  the  hill  behind,  the  sowars  pur- 
suing them  and  cutting  down  several  before  they  reached 
some  very  broken  ground  at  its  foot;  from  this  they  opened 
a  sharp  fire,  and  the  cavalry  at  once  retired  up  the  hill  again. 
The  track  now,  instead  of  ascending  the  next  rise,  followed 
the  valley  down. 

"You  see,"  the  colonel  said  when  he  reached  the  crest, 
"  the  valley  makes  a  sharp  bend  half  a  mile  down.  No  doubt 
that  defile  lies  up  there.  You  can  see  that  the  next  hill  is 
very  much  more  lofty  and  rugged-looking.  Well,  Nand 
Chund,  what  force  was  there  ?  " 

"  Somewhere  about  a  hundred,  colonel.  I  should  not  have 
charged  them,  but  I  saw  they  were  beginning  to  make  off." 

"They  are  gathering  like  a  snowball,"  the  colonel  remarked. 
"  I  expect  that  when  we  reach  the  defile  we  shall  find  their 
whole  force  there." 

For  another  two  miles  they  followed  the  valley,  which  grew 
narrower  as  they  advanced,  the  sides  being  more  and  more 
precipitous.  Parties  of  men  had  been  seen  moving  about 
higher  up,  and  presently  a  scattering  fire  was  opened.  The 
colonel  ordered  two  parties,  each  a  hundred  strong,  to  make 
their  way  up  the  hill  on  either  side  and  then  to  advance  along 
it,  keeping  abreast  of  the  column. 

"If  the  opposition  is  serious,"  he  said,  "I  will  aid  you 
with  the  guns." 

In  a  short  time  the  hillsides  were  dotted  with  puffs  of 
smoke.  Little  could  be  seen  of  the  enemy,  who  lay  behind 
rocks,  occasionally  running  back  and  then  dropping  again 
behind  fresh  shelter  as  the  troops  advanced.  The  fire  on 
both  sides  momentarily  became  hotter.  The  four  mountain 
guns  now  opened  fire,  throwing  shell  high  up  on  the  hillside. 


A    RAID    FROM    THE    HILLS  85 

The  natives  could  be  seen  bolting  from  their  shelters,  and  the 
two  flanking  companies,  which  had  been  almost  brought  to  a 
standstill,  resumed  their  advance. 

The  valley  narrowed  more  and  more  until  it  was  but  some 
ten  or  twelve  yards  wide  at  the  bottom.  The  sides  were  cov- 
ered with  great  boulders  and  jagged  rocks,  with  bush  growing 
up  between  them;  from  these  a  fierce  fire  was  opened.  The 
four  mountain  guns  had  been  left  behind  at  the  spot  where 
they  could  still  assist  the  flanking  companies;  but  the  camel 
guns,  guarded  by  the  cavalry,  advanced  along  the  bottom, 
keeping  up  a  rapid  fire  against  the  invisible  foe.  The  in- 
fantry were  directed  to  clear  the  rocks  on  either  side.  The 
fire  was  very  brisk,  and  the  reports  being  echoed  and  re-echoed 
from  the  hills,  the  sound  seemed  continuous. 

It  was  evident  that  the  enemy  were  far  superior  in  number, 
and  progress  was  very  slow  until  the  two  flanking  companies 
appeared  high  up  on  the  hills,  and  advancing  along  them 
opened  fire  on  the  enemy  below,  who,  although  hidden  from 
those  in  front  of  them,  could  be  seen  from  above.  The  effect 
was  immediate.  The  fire  slackened,  and  the  force  pushed 
forward  as  rapidly  as  the  nature  of  the  ground  would  permit, 
and  in  a  quarter  of  an  hour  issued  out  at  the  other  end  of  the 
ravine.  Numbers  of  men  could  be  seen  ascending  a  hill  in 
front  of  them,  and  on  this,  as  the  colonel  had  learnt  before 
starting,  the  first  of  their  villages  was  situated.  There  was  a 
halt  until  the  troops  were  again  assembled  and  the  mountain 
guns  came  up.  The  advance  was  then  renewed. 


CHAPTER  V 

RETRIBUTION 

UPON  resuming  his  march  the  colonel  divided  the  infantry 
into  three  bodies  of  equal  strength.  The  first,  which  was 
accompanied  by  the  guns,  was  to  move  by  the  path  straight 
up  the  hill;  the  others,  between  whom  the  cavalry  force  was 
divided,  were  to  ascend  it  a  few  hundred  yards  to  the  right 
and  left  of  the  central  column,  so  as  to  flank  the  village  on 
either  side.  For  a  time  the  enemy  kept  up  a  fire  from  the 
brow  of  the  hill,  but  this  died  away  as  the  troops,  pressing 
rapidly  forward,  neared  them,  and  in  a  short  time  the  top  of 
the  hill  was  gained.  The  village  stood  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
away.  It  was  surrounded  by  a  high  wall,  above  which  could 
be  seen  the  tower  of  the  chief's  fortalice. 

"These  little  four-pounders  will  not  be  of  much  good  in 
breaching  that  wall,"  the  colonel  said.  "We  must  attack  by 
the  gate  and  batter  that  down.  Percy,  do  you  ride  round  to 
the  column  on  the  left,  and  see  if  there  is  any  gate  on  that 
side.  Do  you,  Nand  Chund,  do  the  same  on  the  right.  If 
there  are  gates  there  I  will  send  some  of  the  camel  guns  to 
try  and  beat  them  down.  If  they  can't  do  it  the  gates  must 
be  blown  in,  there  are  men  with  powder-bags  in  each  column. 
Let  the  cavalry  work  round  behind  the  village,  and  see  what 
the  ground  is  like  there.  It  looked  to  me  as  if  it  broke  away 
on  that  side.  If  there  are  no  gates  in  the  side  walls,  let  the 

86 


RETRIBUTION  87 

right  column  move  round  to  assist  the  cavalry  to  cut  off  the 
enemy's  retreat.  Let  the  infantry  of  the  left  column  join  us 
here  for  the  attack  on  this  gate.  The  fellows  are  evidently 
in  strong  force." 

Indeed  the  wall  was  fringed  with  smoke,  and  the  bullets 
were  pattering  round  thick  and  fast.  The  men,  however,  had 
at  once  been  placed  in  shelter  behind  a  stone  wall,  and  re- 
mained inactive  for  half  an  hour.  When  Percy  and  Nand 
Chund  rode  back  within  a  minute  or  two  of  each  other,  their 
reports  were  similar.  There  were  no  gates  in  the  side  walls, 
while  behind  the  wall  on  the  other  side  there  was  a  deep  pre- 
cipitous ravine,  with  but  a  few  feet  between  its  upper  edge 
and  the  wall.  The  colonel  gave  the  order  that  fifty  of  the 
infantry  should  remain  on  either  side  to  fire  down  into  the 
ravine  as  the  enemy  retired  across  it,  and  the  rest  should  join 
him.  The  cavalry  were  to  take  post  just  out  of  fire  on  both 
flanks,  to  cut  off  any  fugitives  who  might  drop  from  the  walls, 
and  endeavour  to  escape  from  the  top  of  the  hill. 

The  time  had  not  been  lost,  for  the  four  mountain  guns  had 
kept  up  a  steady  fire  at  the  gates  in  front,  which  were,  when 
the  two  bodies  of  infantry  came  up,  already  torn  and  splin- 
tered, one  of  them  being  evidently  thrown  off  its  hinges. 
Then  two  of  the  companies  advanced  through  the  inclosures 
in  skirmishing  order,  and  when  within  fifty  yards  of  the  wall 
opened  fire  at  its  defenders,  aided  by  the  whole  of  the  guns. 
After  waiting  for  five  minutes  to  allow  the  fire  to  have  its 
effect,  the  colonel  gave  the  word  and  the  column  ran  forward 
towards  the  gate.  A  heavy  fire  was  opened  through  the 
broken  planks. 

"Don't  wait  to  return  it,"  the  colonel,  who  was  riding  at 
the  head  of  column,  shouted.  "  Throw  yourselves  against  the 
gate,  your  weight  will  burst  it  down." 

With  a  cheer  the  men  rushed  on,  and  as  they  reached  the 
gate  there  was  a  crash.  The  shattered  gate  fell,  and  they 
poured  into  the  village. 


88  THROUGH    THE   SIKH    WAR 

The  resistance  was  slight,  for  as  soon  as  the  column  began 
to  advance  the  fire  from  the  wall  had  suddenly  ceased.  Ten 
or  twelve  men  were  shot  or  bayoneted  at  the  gates,  but  as  the 
troops  spread  through  the  village  they  met  with  no  more 
antagonists.  The  doors  of  the  houses  stood  open,  but  the 
hearths  were  cold,  and  the  women  and  children  had  evidently 
been  sent  away  early  in  the  morning.  As  soon  as  he  entered 
the  gate  and  saw  that  resistance  was  over,  the  colonel  shouted 
to  the  men  behind  to  follow  him,  and  rode  straight  through 
the  village  for  the  gate  behind.  He  was,  however,  only  in 
time  to  see  the  last  of  a  crowd  of  men  hurrying  out  through  it; 
but  an  outbreak  of  firing  both  to  the  right  and  left  showed 
that  the  parties  posted  there  were  harassing  the  fugitives  in 
their  retreat. 

As  soon  as  the  men  behind  him  came  up  he  led  them 
through  the  gate,  bade  them  spread  along  the  edge  of  the 
ravine  and  to  open  fire  on  the  tribesmen,  parties  of  whom 
were  already  beginning  to  mount  the  opposite  side  of  the 
ravine.  The  fire  was  maintained  with  considerable  effect 
until  all  were  out  of  range,  then  the  various  detachments  were 
called  in  by  the  sound  of  the  bugle,  and  the  troops  ordered  to 
cook  a  meal.  While  this  was  being  done  a  thorough  search 
was  made  through  the  village.  In  the  chief's  tower  a  consid- 
erable quantity  of  gunpowder  was  found  stored,  and  as  soon 
as  the  troops  had  finished  their  dinner  fire  was  applied  to 
every  house  in  the  village,  and  a  length  of  fuse  thrust  into  the 
powder.  As  they  marched  out  through  the  gates  by  which 
the  enemy  had  retreated,  there  was  a  heavy  explosion,  and 
the  tower  fell  in  ruins. 

They  then  moved  towards  the  next  village,  in  which  direc- 
tion the  enemy  had  retreated.  They  crossed  the  ravine,  and 
then  kept  along  a  valley  to  the  foot  of  the  hill  on  which  the 
village  stood.  The  ground  was  covered  with  scrub  and  bush, 
and  they  were  half-way  up  when  there  was  a  tremendous  yell, 
and  on  either  side  a  great  number  of  half-naked  figures  sprang 


RETRIBUTION  89 

up,  poured  in  a  volley  of  matchlock  balls,  arrows,  and  spears, 
and  then  flung  themselves  upon  the  column. 

Against  younger  troops  the  sudden  assault  might  have  been 
successful,  but  Colonel  Groves'  meri  were  all  old  soldiers,  and 
though  taken  by  surprise  faced  both  ways  without  confusion, 
and  poured  withering  volleys  into  the  enemy.  Many  fell, 
but  the  rest  came  on,  and  for  a  minute  or  two  there  was  a 
fierce  fight — bayonet  against  sword  or  spear;  but  the  tribes- 
men in  vain  attempted  to  break  the  lines,  and  soon,  in  obedi- 
ence to  a  shout  from  their  leader,  sprang  away  and  threw 
themselves  down  among  the  bushes,  vanishing  almost  as  sud- 
denly as  they  had  appeared.  The  troops  now  assumed  the 
offensive,  and  pouring  volleys  into  the  bushes  as  they  ad- 
vanced, swept  through  them,  bayoneting  all  they  found,  until 
the  Turgars  again  leapt  to  their  feet  and  fled.  The  march 
was  now  resumed  up  the  hill,  and  the  village,  which  was 
found  deserted,  was  taken  possession  of.  Here  the  colonel 
determined  to  halt  for  the  night.  Sentries  were  placed  at  the 
gates  and  on  the  walls,  and  the  troops  fell  out  and  scattered 
among  the  houses. 

"I  fancy  that  there  will  be  no  more  fighting,"  Colonel 
Groves  said  to  his  nephew,  who  had  ridden  close  beside  him 
throughout  the  day.  "They  have  had  a  tremendous  lesson. 
I  counted  over  fifty  bodies  as  I  crossed  the  ravine,  and  at  least 
three  times  that  number  must  have  fallen  in  the  attack  upon 
us.  We  have  destroyed  one  of  their  villages,  and  this  is  in 
our  hands,  and  they  must  see  that,  unless  they  submit,  the 
others  will  share  the  same  fate.  They  have  done  their  utmost 
and  failed.  I  think  they  have  had  enough  of  it." 

Late  in  the  afternoon,  indeed,  a  mounted  man,  accompa- 
nied by  two  foot-men,  one  of  whom  carried  a  white  flag,  was 
seen  approaching  the  walls.  Colonel  Groves  ordered  them 
to  be  admitted,  and  they  were  brought  before  him. 

"We  don't  want  to  fight  any  more,"  the  chief  said. 

"I  daresay  not,"  the  colonel  replied,  "but  we  are  perfectly 


90  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

ready  to  go  on  fighting.  You  began  it,  and  we  have  no  inten- 
tion of  stopping  yet." 

"What  conditions  will  you  give?"  the  chief  asked. 

"The  only  conditions  I  will  grant  are  these — the  return  of 
all  the  captives  taken  away,  of  every  head  of  cattle,  and  of 
all  articles  stolen;  the  payment  of  a  fine  of  five  hundred  cat- 
tle; and  the  delivery  into  my  hands  of  the  eldest  sons  of  your 
twelve  principal  chiefs  to  hold  as  hostages  for  your  good 
behaviour  in  the  future.  If  these  conditions  are  not  accepted 
I  shall  burn  your  villages,  and  destroy  your  plantations  and 
crops." 

"We  have  not  got  all  the  prisoners,"  the  chief  said;  "there 
were  others  with  us  who  have  taken  their  share." 

"  I  shall  reckon  with  them  afterwards.  I  am  only  asking 
you  to  give  up  .the  prisoners  and  spoil  you  have  in  your 
hands.  I  shall  find,  when  I  have  punished  the  other  two 
tribes  that  were  engaged  with  you,  what  captives  they  have, 
and  if  any  are  missing  I  shall  return  here  and  burn  your  vil- 
lages over  your  heads." 

"We  cannot  pay  five  hundred  cattle." 

"Oh,  yes,  you  can!  I  know  pretty  well  how  many  you 
have,  and  five  hundred  will  not  leave  you  altogether  without 
some.  I  will  not  abate  one  from  my  demand,  but  I  will  con- 
sent to  take  the  value  of  any  deficiency  in  gold  and  silver 
ornaments,  taken  at  their  weight  in  metal.  Those  are  my 
first  conditions  and  my  last,  and  you  can  carry  them  back  to 
your  chief." 

"The  three  principal  chiefs  are  killed,"  the  man  said,  "but 
I  will  take  your  message  back  to  my  tribe." 

"You  had  best  return  with  an  answer  to-night,  for  at  day- 
break we  shall  fire  this  place  and  advance  against  the  other 
villages." 

"  Will  they  agree,  do  you  think  ? "  Percy  asked  when  the 
chief  retired. 

"They  will  agree,"  the  colonel  replied  confidently.     "The 


RETRIBUTION  91 

threat  of  destroying  their  plantations  will  induce  them  to 
yield.  Their  houses  they  can  soon  build  up  again,  but,  with 
the  greater  part  of  their  cattle  gone,  the  destruction  of  their 
plantations  would  mean  starvation  to  all." 

The  colonel  was  not  mistaken.  There  was  no  reply  that 
night,  but  at  daybreak  on  the  following  morning  a  procession 
was  seen  approaching  the  village.  It  consisted  of  more  than 
half  of  the  women  who  had  been  carried  off,  four  hundred 
cattle  from  the  plains,  and  five  hundred  of  the  little  hill 
cattle.  There  were  also  twelve  lads,  a  few  of  whom  were 
almost  men,  while  others  were  but  four  or  five  years  old. 
Ambassadors  soon  arrived  from  the  Naga  and  Kotah  tribes. 
These  had,  as  the  colonel  learnt  from  a  captured  native,  sent 
contingents  who  had  taken  part  in  the  fight  on  the  previous 
day.  Similar  conditions  to  those  imposed  on  the  Turgars  were 
demanded,  except  that  the  fine  for  each  tribe  was  fixed  at 
three  hundred  head  of  cattle  only,  the  colonel  knowing  that 
they  were  poorer  in  this  respect  than  the  Turgars. 

For  two  days  messengers  went  and  came,  and  it  was  only 
when  at  last  the  troops  were  upon  the  point  of  starting  against 
them  that  they  yielded,  and  on  the  following  morning  the 
captives,  hostages,  and  cattle  arrived  at  the  village.  The 
chiefs  of  all  three  tribes  were  ordered  to  attend  that  afternoon. 
The  colonel  addressed  them,  and  severely  admonished  them 
as  to  their  behaviour  in  the  future.  "If  again,"  he  said, 
"  there  is  any  outrage  whatever  upon  your  peaceable  neigh- 
bours on  the  other  side  of  the  river,  I  warn  you  that  no  mercy 
will  be  shown  you.  Your  villages  will  be  destroyed,  your 
plantations  rooted  up,  your  crops  burned,  and  your  country 
made  desert  from  end  to  end.  I  punished  your  neighbours 
ten  years  ago,  and  I  have  punished  you  now.  The  next  time 
I  have  to  bring  a  force  across  the  river  I  will  root  you  out 
altogether." 

The  chiefs  all  gave  the  most  solemn  assurances  that  they 
would  in  future  abstain  from  forays  across  the  river,  and  in 


92  THROUGH    THE    SIKH    WAR 

order  to  mingle  clemency  with  justice,  and  to  disembarrass 
himself  of  the  trouble  of  looking  after  a  number  of  prisoners, 
he  restored  to  each  of  the  tribes  eight  out  of  the  twelve  hos- 
tages that  had  been  handed  over,  retaining  only  the  sons  of 
four  leading  chiefs.  Upon  the  following  morning  the  expe- 
dition marched  back,  two  companies  of  the  infantry  and  the 
guns  forming  the  column,  while  the  cavalry  and  the  rest  of  the 
infantry  looked  after  the  great  herd  of  cattle  that  had  been 
collected,  and  escorted  the  rescued  women,  many  of  whom 
were  completely  prostrated  by  what  they  had  gone  through. 
The  total  loss  of  the  column  was  but  fifteen  killed  and  fifty- 
three  wounded. 

"  I  am  glad  to  be  back  again,"  the  colonel  said  as  they  rode 
across  the  river.  "  It  has  been  a  very  successful  little  expedi- 
tion, and  the  lesson  has  been  so  severe  that  I  do  not  think  we 
are  likely  to  have  any  more  frontier  trouble  for  some  time. 
The  other  tribesmen  will  all  be  awed  at  the  punishment  we 
have  inflicted." 

"What  will  you  do  with  the  hostages,  uncle?  " 

"  I  shall  keep  them  for  three  or  four  months,  and  then  send 
them  back  with  a  message  to  the  effect  that,  feeling  the  tribes 
have  been  sufficiently  punished,  and  being  assured  that  they 
can  now  be  relied  upon  to  abstain  from  giving  trouble,  I  am 
willing  to  trust  them,  and  will  therefore  no  longer  deprive  the 
chiefs  of  their  children.  Such  clemency  will  aid  the  effect 
of  the  sharp  lesson  we  have  administered." 

The  joy  of  the  villagers  at  the  return  of  their  wives,  daugh- 
ters, and  cattle  was  unbounded,  and  blessings  were  showered 
on  the  governor,  who  had  shown  himself  so  zealous  and  power- 
ful in  protecting  those  under  his  rule. 

Another  two  days'  journey  took  them  to  the  fortress,  where 
their  arrival  with  the  eleven  hundred  captured  cattle  was  hailed 
with  lively  satisfaction  by  the  garrison. 

Things  returned  to  their  normal  state.  Percy  studied,  rode, 
and  drilled  during  the  day,  and  spent  his  evenings  in  the 


v 


RETRIBUTION 


93 


zenana  with  his  uncle  and  aunt,  and  from  the  former  received 
a  detailed  account  of  the  course  of  Sikh  politics  since  the 
death  of  Runjeet  Singh. 

Up  to  the  time  of  the  death  of  the  maharajah  in  1839  the 
most  friendly  relations  had  been  maintained  between  the  Pun- 
jaub  and  the  British.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Khurruk 
Singh.  He  was  a  weak  man,  who  possessed  neither  the  firm- 
ness nor  ambition  of  his  father,  and  the  real  power  was  in  the 
hands  of  Nonehal  Singh,  his  son.  He  was  a  fiery  young  man, 
and  shared  to  the  full  the  hostility  felt  toward  the  British  by 
most  of  the  Sikh  chiefs.  His  father  died,  and  there  was  a 
general  idea  that  the  young  rajah  would  speedily  declare  war 
against  the  English.  He  was,  however,  killed  on  his  return 
from  his  father's  funeral,  by  the  elephant  on  which  he  was 
riding  running  against  a  beam  supporting  some  stonework, 
which  fell  and  killed  both  Nonehal  and  another  prince  who 
was  riding  with  him. 

There  was  little  doubt  that  the  affair  was  not  an  accident, 
but  that  the  mahooth&&  been  bribed  by  the  adherents  of  Shere 
Singh,  a  reputed  son  of  Runjeet  Singh,  who  had  many  power- 
ful supporters  in  his  claim  to  the  throne.  The  chief  of  these 
was  Dhyan  Singh,  the  prime  minister  of  Runjeet,  who  had 
been  removed  from  his  office  by  Khurruk  Singh,  and  who,  with 
his  two  brothers,  had  been  all-powerful  during  the  later  years 
of  the  Lion.  A  number  of  the  chiefs,  however,  were  by  no 
means  disposed  to  again  submit  to  what  was  practically  the 
rule  of  Dhyan  and  his  brothers.  Shere  Singh  had  the  advan- 
tage that,  like  Nonehal,  he  was  very  popular  with  the  army, 
and  for  the  moment  he  obtained  possession  of  Lahore.  He 
was,  however,  expelled  by  the  mother  of  the  late  Nonehal,  an 
able  and  ambitious  woman.  She,  however,  made  the  mistake 
of  refusing  Dhyan  any  employment,  and  the  ex-vizier  soon 
organized  a  party  sufficiently  strong  to  recall  Shere  Singh. 

The  ranee  ordered  the  gates  to  be  shut,  but  General  Ventura 
ordered  the  soldiers  to  open  them,  and  the  ranee  fled.  As 


94  THROUGH   THE  SIKH   WAR 

soon  as  Shere  Singh  was  seated  on  the  throne,  he  handed  over 
the  entire  management  of  business  to  Dhyan  Singh,  and  gave 
himself  up  to  hunting,  and  drinking,  and  other  pleasures. 
Dhyan  was  greatly  offended  at  the  conduct  of  the  prince,  who 
owed  his  elevation  to  the  throne  to  him,  and  endeavoured  to 
persuade  him  to  act  in  a  manner  more  worthy  of  his  position, 
assuring  him  that  the  Sikhs  would  never  submit  to  be  governed 
by  a  prince  who  neglected  all  public  affairs,  and  was  habitually 
drunk.  The  prince  was  offended  at  the  remonstrances  of  his 
minister.  His  boon  companions  fanned  the  flame  of  anger, 
and  persuaded  him  while  in  a  fit  of  drunkenness  to  sign  an 
order  for  the  execution  of  Dhyan  Singh.  The  latter,  however, 
was  kept  well  informed  by  his  agents  in  the  maharajah's  house- 
hold of  what  was  going  on,  and  saw  that  his  oiily  hope  of 
safety  was  in  striking  the  first  blow.  He  therefore  gave  orders 
to  Ajeet  Singh  that  the  rajah  should  be  killed.  The  officer 
was  more  rapid  than  the  agents  of  Shere  Singh,  and  the  latter 
was  shot  immediately,  and  his  son  was  at  the  same  time  mur- 
dered. Ajeet,  however,  either  from  disappointment  at  not 
receiving  from  Dhyan  a  reward  equal  to  his  expectations,  or 
from  some  other  cause,  shot  him  in  the  back,  and  he  fell  dead 
a  few  hours  after  the  murder  of  the  maharajah. 

Heera  Singh,  Dhyan' s  son,  a  great  favourite  with  the  troops, 
knew  that  the  death  of  the  maharajah  had  been  determined 
upon  by  his  father,  and  had  left  the  city  and  gone  to  the  camp 
of  General  Avitabile,  another  of  the  European  officers  of  the 
Punjaub  army.  When  the  messenger  arrived  with  the  news 
that  his  father  too  was  dead,  he  was  in  the  act  of  haranguing 
the  troops  and  preparing  them  for  the  news  of  the  death  of 
Shere  Singh.  Heera  ascended  to  the  flat  roof  of  Avitabile's 
house,  and  sent  messages  to  all  the  sirdars  who  happened  to 
be  in  Lahore,  begging  them  to  come  to  him.  On  their  arrival 
he  unbuckled  his  sword  and  handed  it  to  them,  saying,  "  I  am 
left  alone  and  fatherless,  and  I  throw  myself  on  your  protection. 
Either  kill  me  or  give  me  your  support." 


RETRIBUTION  95 

The  sirdars  at  once  declared  that  they  would  follow  him. 
Heera  then  harangued  the  soldiers,  and  offered  them  an  in- 
crease of  three  rupees  a  month  in  their  pay  if  they  would 
declare  for  him.  Ventura  and  Avitabile  both  espoused  his 
cause,  and  with  their  troops  marched  against  Lahore,  where 
Ajeet  Singh  had  caused  Dhuleep  Singh,  a  child  of  four  years 
old,  and  the  only  lineal  descendant  of  Runjeet  left  alive,  to 
be  proclaimed  maharajah,  and  himself  vizier.  It  was  night 
when  Heera  arrived  in  Lahore.  His  guns  blew  open  the 
Delhi  gate  of  the  town,  and  then  a  desperate  battle  commenced 
in  the  streets.  Both  sides  had  artillery,  and  the  battle  raged 
until  the  morning  with  terrible  slaughter.  Heera's  troops 
were  victorious;  the  fort  was  stormed,  and  Ajeet  killed  by  a 
soldier  as  he  tried  to  escape.  Every  man  in  the  fort  was 
killed  and  the  city  given  up  to  plunder,  and  horrible  cruelties 
perpetrated  upon  the  connections  and  friends  of  Ajeet  Singh. 

Heera  had  no  intention  of  grasping  the  dangerous  position 
of  maharajah,  and  as  soon  as  the  fighting  was  over  he  went 
and  saluted  the  child  Dhuleep  as  maharajah,  assuming  him- 
self the  position  of  prime  minister  his  father  had  occupied. 
This  was  in  1843.  At  that  time  the  British  were  occupied  in 
conquering  Gwalior,  and  the  signal  overthrow  of  the  Mahrat- 
tas  on  the  fields  of  Maharajaypoor  and  Punniar  served  for  the 
moment  to  abate  the  eagerness  of  the  army  for  a  war  against 
them.  They  were,  however,  as  usual,  mutinous  and  clamor- 
ous for  still  further  increase  in  their  pay,  and  the  treasury  at 
Lahore  being  empty,  Heera  Singh  had  the  greatest  difficulty 
in  complying  with  their  demands,  and  in  order  to  do  so  he 
caused  an  uncle,  who  like  Dhyan  and  Ghoolab  had  amassed 
enormous  possessions,  to  be  murdered,  and  used  his  wealth 
as  a  means  of  quieting  the  troops.  These,  however,  soon 
advanced  fresh  demands,  and  Heera  being  unable  to  satisfy 
them  was  murdered. 

At  his  death  Dhuleep  Singh's  mother  appointed  her  brother 
Juwaheer  as  vizier.  The  choice  was  not  pleasing  to  the  sol- 


dtr~ 

96  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

diers,  who  invaded  the  palace  and  murdered  him  before  the 
eyes  of  his  sister  and  her  child.  Ghoolab  Singh,  the  last  sur- 
rivor  of  the  three  great  brothers,  was  invited  to  take  the  office 
of  vizier,  but  he  wisely  declined  the  dangerous  post.  His 
possessions  were  vast,  and  his  power  almost  equal  to  that  of 
the  ruler  of  the  Punjaub.  He  was  virtually  supreme  in  all 
the  northern  territories  that  had  been  conquered  in  the  time 
of  Runjeet,  and  from  his  residence  at  Jummoo  ruled  over  all 
Cashmere,  together  with  the  country  stretching  up  to  the 
borders  of  Afghanistan. 

He  it  was  who  was  the  mover  in  the  intrigues  against  Col- 
onel Groves.  One  of  the  first  demands  made  by  the  soldiers 
upon  the  accession  of  Heera  Singh  to  power  had  been  the 
immediate  dismissal  of  all  the  foreign  officers  in  his  service, 
and  greatly  against  his  inclination,  for  he  knew  that  these 
men  alone  had  the  power  of  keeping  the  mutinous  soldiery 
in  any  degree  of  order,  he  had  been  forced  to  accede  to  it. 
Most  of  them  had  left  the  country  at  once,  knowing  that  mur- 
der would  speedily  follow  dismissal;  but  Colonel  Groves 
having,  since  the  death  of  Runjeet,  successfully  defeated  all 
attempts  to  turn  him  out  of  his  governorship  and  fortress,  had 
determined  to  await  the  end,  being  sure  that  ere  long  the 
hatred  of  the  Sikhs  against  the  British  would  bring  about  a 
war  that  might  entirely  change  the  position. 

It  was  a  few  months  after  Percy's  arrival  that  Ghoolab  re- 
fused to  accept  the  post  of  vizier. 

"That  is  good  news,  uncle,  is  it  not?"  he  asked,  when  a 
messenger  arrived  bearing  a  letter  containing  the  news,  from 
a  member  of  the  court  at  Lahore  who  was  in  the  colonel's  pay 
and  interest. 

"I  don't  know,  Percy,  I  rather  think  it  would  have  been 
better  if  he  had  accepted  the  post.  In  the  first  place  he 
would  have  had  his  hands  so  full  that  he  would  not  have  had 
time  to  give  much  attention  to  my  affairs.  Then  if  he  had 
sent  strong  bodies  of  troops  to  attack  this  place,  as  likely 


RETRIBUTION  97 

as  not  they  would  have  said  that  they  were  being  sacrificed 
in  his  interest,  and  it  would  have  been  an  occasion  for  a  fresh 
mutiny.  And  lastly,  the  viziership  has  of  late  been  fatal  to 
its  holders,  and  Ghoolab  might  have  formed  no  exception, 
and  I  might  have  been  freed  from  my  most  dangerous  enemy. 
Now  he  will  be  able  to  carry  on  his  intrigues  from  Jummoo 
without  interruption.  Since  the  death  of  Runjeet  his  hands 
have  been  tied  to  a  certain  extent,  first  by  his  brother  Dhyan, 
and  then  by  Heera  being  prime  minister,  and  he  had  to  take 
care  that  no  movement  of  his  endangered  their  popularity  or 
position.  Now  that  his  two  brothers  and  his  nephew  have 
gone,  he  need  consult  only  what  he  thinks  is  his  own  interest, 
and  it  is  distinctly  his  interest  that  his  son  should  be  governor 
of  this  district,  which  is  flourishing  and  capable  of  being 
squeezed  to  a  large  extent,  and  which  lies  so  close  to  his  own 
territories." 

"  Is  it  only  on  account  of  this  that  he  is  your  enemy,  uncle?  " 
"No,  the  matter  is  of  much  longer  standing.  It  began  at 
one  of  the  battles  against  the  Afghans.  The  sirdars  and  their 
troops  commanded  by  Ghoolab  did  very  badly,  and  had  it 
not  been  for  the  courage  and  obstinacy  of  my  three  regiments 
and  those  of  Portalis  we  should  have  been  defeated.  Runjeet 
always  managed  to  keep  himself  thoroughly  well  acquainted 
with  what  was  going  on,  and  Ghoolab  was  for  a  time  in  con- 
siderable disgrace,  while  very  handsome  presents  were  made 
to  Portalis  and  myself,  and  three  months'  pay  given  to  each 
of  our  officers  and  soldiers.  I  warned  Portalis  that  Ghoolab 
would  not  forgive  us,  but  he  was  a  little  headstrong  and 
scoffed  at  the  danger.  Three  months  after,  he  fell  by  the 
knife  of  an  assassin.  He  was  a  good  comrade  and  friend  of 
mine,  and  was  indeed  the  only  man  among  the  European 
officers  I  really  cared  for,  and  I  did  not  hesitate  to  denounce 
Ghoolab  to  Runjeet  in  open  durbar  as  the  author  of  his  assas- 
sination. Of  course  I  could  not  prove  it,  but  the  maharajah 
was  certainly  of  my  opinion,  and  Ghoolab  was  ordered  to  go 


98  THROUGH  THE   SIKH  WAR 

and  live  on  his  estates,  and  was  for  some  months  in  great 
disgrace. 

"All  my  acquaintances  warned  me  that  I  was  throwing  away 
my  life  by  thus  venturing  to  denounce  one  of  the  all-powerful 
trio  of  brothers.  But,  as  you  see,  I  have  lived  through  it  thus 
far.  Still,  it  has  only  been  by  the  most  unceasing  caution 
and  wariness.  I  have  had  at  least  a  dozen  narrow  escapes 
from  assassination,  and  during  the  lifetime  of  Runjeet  Singh 
the  intrigues  against  me  were  incessant;  but  the  Old  Lion 
knew  when  he  was  well  served,  and  stuck  to  me  staunchly. 
He  was,  in  the  last  year  of  his  life,  compelled  by  the  pressure 
brought  upon  him  to  sign  my  dismissal,  but  he  sent  me  a 
private  note  by  the  hands  of  a  trusty  messenger.  It  con- 
tained only  a  few  words.  '/  am  obliged  to  yield,  but  there  is 
no  reason  why  you  should  do  so.  The  sword  should  always 
protect  the  head.'  I  was  aware  of  what  was  going  on  at  court, 
and  had  already  resolved  to  hold  my  governorship  till  the  last. 
But  I  was  very  glad  to  get  the  old  man's  note;  he  had  been  a 
kind  and  good  master  to  me,  and  I  should  not  have  liked  to 
take  action  that  might  appear  rebellion  against  him.  What 
others  said  or  thought  I  did  not  care.  Now  I  had  the  Old 
Lion's  approval,  my  conscience  was  perfectly  easy. 

"  Ghoolab  himself  commanded  the  force  that  came  to  put 
his  son  in  possession,  and  the  fact  that  he  had  to  retire  after 
losing  some  hundreds  of  men,  without  accomplishing  his 
object,  did  not,  as  you  may  suppose,  in  any  way  diminish  his 
feeling  of  unfriendliness  towards  me.  I  get  constant  and 
accurate  intelligence  of  what  takes  place  at  Jummoo,  and  I 
know  that  I  am  constantly  in  his  thoughts,  and  that  denuncia- 
tions of  me  form  one  of  his  staple  subjects  of  conversation 
among  his  intimates.  I  need  hardly  tell  you  how  great  is  the 
terror  among  the  inhabitants  of  my  districts  at  the  thoughts 
of  falling  into  Ghoolab's  hands.  The  cruelty  which  he  dis- 
played in  his  conquest  of  Cashmere  was  appalling,  thou- 
sands of  people  being  put  to  death  by  all  forms  of  torture. 


RETRIBUTION  99 

The  trade  of  this  district  would  be  destroyed,  the  merchants 
plundered,  and  under  one  excuse  or  other  all  private  property 
would  be  confiscated  by  him.  Therefore  I  am  well  served. 
The  traders  have  naturally  agents  and  correspondents  all  over 
the  Punjaub,  who  inform  them  of  every  rumour  current,  and 
these  accounts  are  promptly  transmitted  to  me,  so  that  I  get 
the  earliest  possible  intelligence  of  every  movement  or  in- 
trigue as  soon  as  it  is  set  on  foot,  and  no  body  of  men  can  be 
set  in  motion  within  a  couple  of  hundred  miles  of  this  fortress 
without  my  receiving  news  of  it  in  the  course  of  a  day  or  two." 

A  few  days  later  the  colonel  said  when  they  met  at  breakfast : 
"There  is  trouble  coming,  Percy.  I  have  had  a  letter  from 
my  agents  at  Lahore,  saying  that  several  of  the  punches — as 
the  leaders  of  the  soldiers  are  called — have  for  the  last  day  or 
two  been  loudly  denouncing  me,  saying  that  it  is  a  disgrace  to 
the  Sikh  nation  that  an  insolent  foreigner  should  not  only 
remain  among  them,  but,  in  the  teeth  of  his  dismissal  by  the 
ruler  of  Lahore,  maintain  himself  by  force  of  arms  as  the 
governor  of  a  district  of  the  Punjaub.  As  the  ranee  has  no 
vizier,  and  is  entirely  helpless  in  the  hands  of  the  soldiers, 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  she  will  authorize  an  expedition 
against  me,  and  will  indeed  be  glad  to  agree  to  a  project 
which  will  remove  a  number  of  her  insolent  soldiery  from  the 
city.  The  clamour  for  a  war  against  the  British  grows  daily 
in  strength,  and  most  of  the  leading  sirdars  are  in  this  matter 
in  agreement  with  the  troops,  and  the  ranee  cannot  but  think 
that  it  is  very  much  better  that  they  should  occupy  themselves 
in  an  expedition  against  a  man  in  whom  she  has,  of  course, 
no  interest,  than  embark  in  a  great  war  which  may  end  by 
costing  her  infant  son  his  kingdom." 

"  What  are  you  going  to  do,  uncle  ?  " 

The  colonel  shrugged  his  shoulders.  "  Sharpen  my  sword, 
see  that  the  guns  are  in  good  order,  and  overhaul  our  stock  of 
ammunition.  I  feel  quite  convinced  that  we  can  repel  all 
attacks  by  a  mutinous  horde  like  this,  provided  only  that 


100  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

there   is  no   treachery   at  work.      That    is    our   one    weak 
point." 

"You  have  never  found  out  yet,  uncle,  who  it  was  sent 
Ghoolab  the  news  of  my  coming  here?  " 

"  No,  I  have  no  ground  for  suspicion  against  anyone.  Nand 
Chund,  and  two  or  three  of  the  officers  of  whose  fidelity  I  feel 
absolutely  sure,  have  been  quietly  trying  to  find  out  ever  since 
you  came  here,  but  without  success.  Azim  Bund,  my  steward, 
has  also  been  trying  in  other  quarters,  but  he  too  has  altogether 
failed.  Of  course  the  traitor  may  be  a  member  of  my  house- 
hold and  not  one  of  my  officers;  in  that  case  his  treachery 
would  be  of  little  importance.  Although  by  getting  news  of 
your  coming  he  might  have  struck  me  a  heavy  blow,  in  other 
respects  he  can  tell  them  nothing  beyond  the  fact  that  I  am 
alive  and  well,  and  very  much  on  my  guard.  He  may  give 
them  the  number  of  cannons  I  have  got,  the  amount  of 
ammunition  in  stock,  and  the  state  of  the  food  magazines, 
but  the  news  can  give  them  no  satisfaction  and  can  do  me  no 
harm. 

"It  is  altogether  different  if  it  is  an  officer.  In  every 
considerable  body  of  men  there  are  a  certain  number  who 
think  they  have  a  grievance  of  some  kind;  they  have  either 
been  punished  unjustly,  or  think  they  have  been  overlooked 
in  promotion  and  that  their  services  have  not  been  sufficiently 
recognized.  In  some  it  is  merely  the  desire  for  a  change  of 
any  sort;  and  when  the  men  know,  as  of  course  they  do  know, 
that  the  soldiers  of  the  army  are  enriching  themselves  both  at 
the  expense  of  the  government  and  of  the  population,  they 
may  feel  dissatisfied  with  their  dull  life  and  regular  pay  here. 
At  any  rate  there  must  be  many  who  could  be  worked  up  by 
an  astute  rascal,  and  a  gate  thrown  open,  or  a  rope-ladder 
lowered  over  the  wall,  might  lay  the  place  at  the  mercy  of  our 
enemies.  I  have  no  fear  whatever  of  this  section  being  nu- 
merous enough  to  get  up  anything  like  a  formidable  mutiny, 
but  a  party  of  only  twenty  determined  men  might  any  night 


RETRIBUTION  101 

break  their  way  in  here  and  cut  all  our  throats  long  before  the 
troops  could  come  to  our  assistance,  might  seize  my  wife's 
jewels  and  valuables,  and  make  their  escape  by  means  of  a 
rope-ladder  over  the  wall.  That,  I  think,  is  the  most  danger- 
ous contingency.  I  always  sleep  with  three  brace  of  pistols 
within  reach  of  my  hand,  and  you  know  I  have  warned  you  to 
keep  arms  by  your  bedside;  still,  though  we  might  sell  our 
lives  dearly,  you  may  be  sure  that  the  attack  would  not  be 
made  except  by  a  force  sufficient  for  the  purpose." 

"Why  don't  you  keep  a  strong  guard  in  the  house,  uncle?" 

"Because,  my  boy,  I  don't  know  who  the  traitors  are.  The 
officer  in  command  might  be  the  very  man  himself,  and  he 
might  so  contrive  it  that  the  guard  was  composed  of  men 
whom  he  had  corrupted.  Where  should  we  be  then?  " 

"  But  you  might  appoint  Nand  Chund  to  be  always  officer 
of  the  guard?  " 

"Constable  of  the  palace — eh,  Percy?" 

"  Well,  you  might  call  him  what  you  like,  uncle,  but  surely 
he  would  be  able  to  pick  out  a  dozen  men  of  whose  fidelity  he 
was  assured.  The  duty  would  not  be  severe,  they  would  only 
have  to  furnish  the  two  sentries  at  the  door,  instead  of  these 
being  sent  from  one  or  other  of  the  regiments." 

"  I  will  think  of  it,  Percy.  Just  at  present  there  is  less 
ground  for  fear  than  usual,  for  if  an  expedition  is  on  foot  to 
attack  us  openly,  such  a  plot  as  this  would  most  certainly  be 
delayed  until  there  was  a  force  outside  where  the  conspirators 
could  betake  themselves  after  carrying  their  designs  into 
execution.  The  fact  that,  even  were  they  successful,  they 
would  certainly  be  pursued,  and  for  the  most  part  hunted  down 
and  slaughtered  by  the  cavalry,  has,  'no  doubt,  been  one  of 
the  reasons  why  no  such  attempt  as  that  we  are  talking  of 
has  been  made  long  ago." 

"  Well,  I  do  hope  that  when  an  army  approaches  you  will 
do  what  Percy  suggests,"  Mahtab,  who  had  been  listening 
silently  to  the  conversation,  said  to  her  husband.  "  You  have 


102  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

escaped  so  many  times,  Roland,  that  you  have  come  to  think 
that  no  attempt  against  your  life  will  ever  succeed,  and  cer- 
tainly it  is  likely  that  Ghoolab,  while  organizing  an  open 
assault  upon  you,  will  take  measures  to  secure  his  aim  being 
carried  out  in  other  ways  if  possible." 

"Very  well,  wife;  you  may  consider  it  settled  that  on  the 
day  when  an  attacking  force  crosses  the  boundary  of  the  prov- 
ince, Nand  Chund  shall  be  installed  as  chief  of  a  special 
bodyguard  here." 


CHAPTER  VI 

A   SIEGE 

NOT  a  day  passed  now  without  messengers  coming  in  with 
warnings  of  approaching  danger,  and  one  morning  early 
the  officer  on  guard  reported  that  a  large  number  of  persons 
could  be  seen  approachng  by  the  road  from  the  south. 

"Do  they  look  like  troops? "  the  colonel  asked. 

"  No,  sahib ;  they  are  on  horseback  and  on  foot,  and  there 
are  many  carts  among  them." 

"  I  have  no  doubt  then,  Kur  Aloof,  that  they  are  merchants 
of  the  towns  coming  in  here  for  refuge.  The  enemy  cannot 
be  far  off,  and  they  know  how  the  soldiers  would  squeeze 
them  if  they  had  a  chance." 

"  Will  you  let  all  those  people  in  here,  uncle  ?  They  will 
eat  up  our  provisions  and  drink  up  our  water." 

"As  I  told  you,  Percy,  we  have  sufficient  of  both  for  a 
number  double  that  at  present  within  the  walls.  Did  four 
times  the  total  now  here  arrive  the  supplies  would  still  hold 
out  six  months,  and  two  months  is  the  utmost  that  the  siege 
is  likely  to  last.  One  need  never  be  afraid  of  a  long  siege  by 
men  commanded  by  leaders  having  no  authority  over  them. 
A  powerful  prince  might  send  troops  on  a  siege  and  order 
them  to  maintain  it  until  they  captured  the  place,  even  if  it 
took  them  ten  years  to  do  so,  but  at  present  the  Punjaub 
is  without  a  master,  and  the  troops  have  only  been  induced 
•  103 


104  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

to  come  here  by  the  prospect  of  plunder.  But  as  soon  as  they 
find  that  they  make  but  little  impression  upon  us,  and  that 
the  siege,  with  its  labours,  and  hardships,  and  dangers,  may 
continue  for  many  months,  they  will  soon  get  tired  of  it,  and 
in  the  absence  of  a  controlling  power  will  march  away. 

"They  have  a  good  many  deserters  from  our  service  among 
them,  and  little  as  they  love  Europeans  they  will  utilize  their 
services,  and  I  anticipate  that  for  a  while  at  least  it  will  be 
made  very  hot  for  us.  There  are  a  score  of  points  on  that 
hillside  half  a  mile  away  where  guns  can  be  posted  to  play  on 
us,  while  we  could  make  but  a  feeble  return,  and  there  is 
nothing  like  a  plunging  fire  kept  up  night  and  day  to  weaken 
the  spirits  and  lower  the  confidence  of  a  garrison.  That  will 
be  the  time  when  the  traitors,  if  there  are  any,  will  be  busy 
among  the  men,  and  it  will  need  unceasing  care  and  vigilance 
to  prevent  trouble." 

In  a  short  time  the  people  seen  in  the  valley  below  began 
to  enter  the  fortress.  They  were,  as  the  colonel  had  antici- 
pated, merchants  and  other  people  having  something  to  lose, 
from  the  various  towns  in  the  district.  Most  of  them  brought 
with  them  carts  laden  with  their  choicest  merchandise,  and 
all  had  their  portable  valuables  and  money  with  them.  They 
reported  that  news  had  come  in  the  evening  before,  that  a 
very  large  force  had  arrived  at  a  point  within  fifteen  miles  of 
the  frontier  of  the  province,  and  that  the  soldiers  had  been 
promised  the  sack  of  all  the  towns  and  villages  as  an  induce- 
ment for  them  to  undertake  the  siege  of  the  fortress. 

"But  how  am  I  to  feed  so  many  mouths?"  the  colonel 
asked  one  of  the  leading  merchants,  with  a  smile. 

"We  know  that  our  lord  has  great  stores  laid  up  in  his 
magazines,"  the  merchant  answered,  "and  we  are,  of  course, 
ready  to  pay  for  all  that  he  will  let  us  have." 

"  I  have  no  doubt  that  the  magazines  will  hold  out  as  long 
as  it  is  necessary,"  the  colonel  replied,  "and  as  I  regard  all 
who  enter  here  as  my  guests,  each  man,  woman,  and  child 


A   SIEGE  105 

shall  draw  rations  of  what  food  we  have  as  long  as  it  lasts. 
It  has  been  bought  out  of  the  revenues  of  the  province,  and 
as  each  of  you  contributed,  so  shall  you  now  share.  But  you 
know  you  will  fare  worse  if  the  place  is  taken  and  you  are 
found  here  than  you  would  have  done  had  you  remained 
quietly  ,at  home." 

The  merchant  shook  his  head.  "There  could  be  no  worse, 
sahib.  The  soldiers  plunder,  kill,  burn,  and  destroy  as  they 
did  in  Cashmere;  they  can  do  no  more  if  they  find  us  here. 
But  we  are  not  afraid  of  their  taking  the  fortress.  It  is  strong, 
and  everyone  knows  my  lord's  valour  and  experience.  The 
army  will  never  be  able  to  win  their  way  in  here." 

"I  hope  not,  my  friends;  I  will  certainly  do  my  best  to 
prevent  them  from  doing  so.  And  now  about  yourselves. 
The  stream  of  fugitives  grows  broader  and  thicker  every  hour, 
and  if  it  goes  on  like  this,  by  nightfall  we  shall  have  over  five 
thousand  persons  here  in  addition  to  the  strength  of  the  gar- 
rison. Against  that  I  say  nothing,  a  thousand  at  least  will  be 
able-bodied  men  capable  of  bearing  arms,  and  1  shall  expect 
each  to  do  his  best;  but  where  am  I  to  stow  so  great  a  num- 
ber? The  barracks  are  already  full,  and  but  few  indeed  will 
be  able  to  find  lodging  in  the  houses  of  the  traders.  I  have 
tents  and  straw  for  two  thousand  people,  but  how  can  they  be 
pitched?  The  ground  is  solid  rock.  There  is  no  way  of 
driving  tent-pegs,  and  I  see  not  how  they  can  be  erected." 

"  We  might  spread  them  over  the  carts,  and  so  obtain  a 
protection  from  the  night  air  and  a  shelter  for  the  women  and 
children,  and  they  might  even  erect  poles  in  the  carts  them- 
selves and  stay  them  by  ropes  to  the  sides." 

"That  is  a  very  good  idea,  and  I  will  order  the  officer  in 
charge  of  the  stores  to  issue  a  tent  to  each  owner  of  a  cart, 
the  others  must  manage  as  best  they  can.  I  daresay  five  hun- 
dred can  be  stowed  away  m  the  lofts  of  the  stables  and  in  other 
places  not  in  use,  while  some  with  poles  leaned  against  a  wall 
and  canvas  spread  over  them  can  make  shelters  good  enough 


THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

on  a  pinch.  The  oxen  must  be  given  over  to  one  of  my 
officers,  who  will  see  that  they  are  fed  from  the  granaries  and 
will  kill  them  for  food." 

The  colonel  had  not  over-estimated  the  number  of  those 
likely  to  arrive,  and  before  nightfall  over  five  thousand  had 
entered  the  fortress.  Stringent  orders  were  laid  down  that 
none  save  the  regular  troops  should  be  allowed  to  approach 
the  walls,  and  each  party  as  it  arrived  was  conducted  to  the 
spot  allotted  to  it.  Every  open  space  was  covered  with  shel- 
ters of  one  kind  or  another,  the  larger  constructed  of  tents, 
the  smaller  of  shawls  and  blankets.  The  principal  street  was 
left  clear  of  such  erections  in  order  to  admit  of  a  free  passage 
for  the  troops,  but  it  was  ordered  that  all  cooking  operations 
should  be  performed  there,  as  fires  would  be  dangerous  in  the 
extreme  among  the  crowded  tents.  When  night  came,  strong 
guards  were  placed  on  the  walls,  especially  on  that  facing  the 
shoulder  of  the  hill,  upon  which  any  open  attack  must  fall, 
Percy's  idea  was  carried  out,  and  a  body-guard  composed  of 
six  men  from  each  of  the  two  infantry  regiments,  and  an 
equal  number  from  the  cavalry,  marched  into  the  governor's 
house  under  the  command  of  Nand  Chund.  Their  instruc- 
tions were  that  no  one  was  to  be  allowed  to  enter  the  house, 
whatever  he  might  allege  to  be  the  nature  of  his  business, 
unless  furnished  with  a  written  order  to  do  so  from  the 
governor. 

Percy  had  been  busy  all  day  seeing  that  the  new-comers  fell 
into  their  places,  and  in  aiding  them  to  shake  down  in  some 
sort  of  comfort,  and  he  was  thoroughly  tired  out  when  he 
joined  the  colonel  and  his  wife  in  their  room  that  evening. 

"Well,  uncle,  I  am  glad  it  is  coming  at  last.  It  is  much 
better  to  know  the  worst  than  to  go  on  wondering  when  it  was 
going  to  begin." 

"I  don't  know,  Percy.  I  have  been  in  so  many  troubles 
and  frays  and  battles  since  I  came  out  here,  that  the  thought 
that  we  might  have  to  stand  a  siege  was  no  very  great  trouble 


A   SIEGE  107 

to  me;  besides,  there  was  alway*s  the  possibility  that  some- 
thing might  occur  to  postpone  it  altogether.  The  soldiers 
and  most  of  the  sirdars  seem  bent  upon  having  a  fight  with 
the  English,  and  I  greatly  hoped  that  it  would  begin  before 
Ghoolab's  intrigues  against  me  had  come  to  a  head.  How- 
ever, now  it  has  come  we  must  make  the  best  of  it,  and  I 
have  no  great  fear  of  the  result.  While  you  have  been  busy 
with  these  people  this  afternoon  I  have  been  superintending 
the  mounting  of  two  heavy  howitzers  as  mortars,  and  if  they 
erect  batteries  on  the  hill,  as  I  expect  they  will,  we  will  see 
if  we  cannot  drop  a  few  shell  among  them.  Nothing  un- 
steadies  artillerymen  more  than  finding  that  the  earthworks  in 
front  of  them  do  not  as  they  expect  protect  them,  and  that  by 
no  ingenuity  can  they  defend  themselves  from  missiles  that 
seem  to  drop  down  from  the  sky  upon  them." 

"  But  how  do  you  do  that,  uncle?  " 

"  Simply  by  the  amount  of  powder  you  put  in.  A  mortar 
is  always  fixed  at  a  certain  angle,  and  of  course  you  fix  a 
howitzer  the  same  way  when  you  use  it  for  that  purpose. 
With  a  mortar  the  amount  of  powder  of  a  given  strength 
required  to  send  a  shell  to  a  given  distance  is  known  to  every 
artilleryman,  but  with  a  howitzer  one  must  get  it  by  experi- 
ment. You  first  put  in  the  amount  of  powder  you  think 
sufficient.  The  ball  is  fired  up  into  the  air,  and  you  watch 
where  it  drops.  If  it  is  short  you  add  an  ounce  or  two  of 
powder,  as  the  case  may  be.  If  it  is  too  far  you  decrease  the 
charge  until  you  find  that  the  shell  drops  just  behind  the 
enemy's  earthworks  among  the  artillerymen  serving  a  gun. 
Having  once  got  the  exact  charge  of  course  you  stick  to  it. 
This  sort  of  thing  annoys  the  Sikhs,  who  are  not  much  accus- 
tomed to  shell.  A  few  of  them  were  sent  up  to  Lahore,  and 
I  managed  to  get  hold  of  one  and  had  several  hundred  cast 
here  to  fit  those  two  howitzers,  and  had  a  large  number  of 
fuses  made  and  stored  away  for  future  use.  If  they  try  to 
climb  the  rocks,  a  few  shells  rolled  down  from  the  walls  are 
likely  to  be  very  effective." 


108  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

"What  are  to  be  my  duties  principally,  uncle  ?" 

"Your  chief  duty  will  be  to  watch,  Percy,  especially  at 
night.  The  officers  will,  of  course,  go  their  rounds  frequently, 
but  as  there  may  be  a  traitor  among  them,  I  can  place  no 
absolute  reliance  on  their  vigilance.  I  shall  myself  be  about 
as  much  as  possible,  but  as  I  shall  have  to  look  after  every- 
thing in  the  daytime  I  must  take  some  rest  at  night;  one  can- 
not do  two  or  three  months  without  sleep.  I  shall  release  you 
from  all  duty  during  the  day,  although  in  case  of  a  serious 
attack  you  will  take  your  place  on  the  wall;  otherwise  I  wish 
you  to  sleep  in  the  day  and  to  keep  a  sharp  look-out  on  every- 
thing at  night,  being  constantly  upon  the  walls  seeing  that  the 
sentries  are  vigilant,  and  listening  intently  for  anything  that 
might  indicate  a  movement  from  below.  I  shall  tell  off  four 
of  Nand  Chund's  party  to  accompany  you,  for  if  treachery  is 
intended  there  would  be  no  hesitation  in  planting  a  dagger  in 
your  heart  and  then  getting  rid  of  your  body  over  the  wall. 
You  are  nearly  sixteen  now,  and  strong  and  active,  but  on  a 
dark  night  that  would  avail  nothing  against  a  lurking  assassin." 

"Shall  I  begin  to-night,  uncle?" 

"There  is  no  occasion  for  that.  The  enemy  have  not 
arrived  yet,  and  indeed  no  one  would  dream  of  attempting  to 
ascend  the  craig  unaided.  I  fancy  they  will  try  an  open 
assault  to  begin  with.  When  they  find  that  fails  they  may  try 
surprise." 

About  midnight  an  officer  reported  that  a  dull  confused 
sound  could  be  heard  down  the  valley.  The  colonel  took  a 
couple  of  signal  rockets,  with  which  one  of  the  boxes  brought 
by  Percy  from  England  was  filled,  and  proceeded,  accompanied 
by  his  nephew,  Nand  Chund,  and  four  of  his  guard,  to  the 
wall  at  the  lower  end  of  the  rock.  Lanterns  placed  on  the 
ground  were  burning  here,  and  a  party  of  artillerymen  were 
standing  by  the  four  guns  looking  down  the  valley. 

"How  far  do  you  think  they  are  away?  "  the  colonel  asked 
the  officer  in  command  there. 


A   SIEGE  109 

"A  party  of  them  have  just  crossed  the  wooden  bridge  over 
the  stream,  sahib.  I  heard  the  trampling  of  their  horses  upon 
it  distinctly." 

"That  is  fourteen  hundred  and  thirteen  yards  from  the  foot 
of  the  rock.  Drive  those  wedges  a  little  farther.  That  is 
right.  I  cut  those  nicks  upon  them  the  other  day  when  we 
had  got  the  exact  depression  I  required  to  lay  the  guns  on  the 
bridge.  Now  let  us  wait  until  another  body  of  them  are 
crossing." 

Three  or  four  minutes  later  the  sound  in  the  distance  became 
suddenly  louder. 

"Now,  Nand  Chund,  fire  that  rocket.  I  think  you  have 
got  it  about  the  right  angle." 

The  rocket  flew  up  in  the  air,  and  burst  some  distance  away 
throwing  out  a  dozen  fire-balls.  Their  light  enabled  the  gov- 
ernor to  see  right  down  the  valley.  Some  slight  alteration  in 
the  direction  of  the  guns  was  made,  and  then  one  after  another 
they  were  fired.  Another  rocket  was  now  thrown  up,  and  by 
its  light  the  dark  mass  of  men  on  or  behind  the  bridge  could 
be  seen  to  be  broken  up  and  retreating.  Almost  at  the  same 
moment  four  guns  were  fired  from  an  upper  bastion. 

"That  is  grape,  Percy,"  the  colonel  said.  The  officer  there 
was  told  to  wait  till  the  men  could  see  a  body  of  troops 
advancing  up  the  valley.  "  Listen,  there  go  the  cavalry 
scampering  back  as  hard  as  the  horses  can  lay  their  feet  to 
the  ground.  I  doubt  whether  we  shall  hear  anything  more  of 
them  to-night." 

"They  could  hardly  hope  to  have  passed  without  our  notic- 
ing them.  They  must  have  been  sure  that  we  should  have 
warning  of  their  coming." 

"  No  doubt,  lad,  but  they  may  not  have  calculated  on  our 
opening  fire  upon  them  in  the  dark.  They  will  not  have 
reckoned  upon  the  rockets,  and  hoped,  I  have  no  doubt,  to 
push  a  part  of  their  force  past  the  place  and  up  on  to  the  brow 
before  morning,  for  they  would  know  well  enough  that  they 


110  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

could  not  pass  under  the  fire  of  our  guns  when  the  sun  was 
once  up." 

"But  how  will  they  get  there,  uncle?  now  we  have  shown 
them  that  it  is  almost  as  dangerous  by  night  as  by  day." 

"  Probably  they  will  march  round  among  the  hills,  and  come 
down  upon  us.  There  will  be  no  difficulty  in  infantry  doing 
it,  and  they  may  manage  to  drag  a  few  light  guns  with  them, 
but  they  can't  get  anything  like  heavy  artillery  up  there  except 
by  bringing  them  along  below,  and  taking  them  up  the  regular 
road.  That  is  the  first  of  the  difficulties  they  have  to 
encounter,  and  as  I  have  a  large  stock  of  blue  lights  I  don't 
see  how  they  are  going  to  get  up  the  hill,  which  is  commanded 
by  a  dozen  of  our  guns.  They  will  be  safe  enough  from  our 
fire  as  they  pass  along  under  the  craig,  for  there  is  not  a  gun 
that  can  be  depressed  sufficiently  to  bear  upon  them  there, 
though  we  can  annoy  them  by  pitching  shell  and  hand- 
grenades  down  upon  them.  Still,  determined  men  might 
manage  that,  and  might  even  make  their  way  up  the  hill  in 
face  of  our  fire,  but  they  could  never  drag  heavy  guns  up  a 
road  which  we  can  sweep  with  grape.  So  you  see  they  have 
got  a  stiff  problem  to  solve  before  they  can  get  a  battering-gun 
to  play  on  our  northern  wall." 

For  another  hour  they  kept  watch.  There  was  still  a  con- 
fused sound  from  the  lower  end  of  the  valley,  but  nothing  to 
indicate  any  renewed  advance.  They  therefore  returned  to 
the  house. 

Percy  was  aroused  at  daybreak,  and  at  once  made  his  way 
to  the  battery,  where  they  had  been  the  night  before.  The 
colonel  and  several  of  his  officers  were  already  there.  The 
lower  end  of  the  valley  was  occupied  by  a  great  mass  of  men, 
horses,  and  waggons.  Tents  had  been  erected  here  and  there, 
and  the  banners  of  their  occupants  were  flying  before  them. 

"How  strong  do  you  think  they  are,  uncle?"  Percy  asked. 

"It  is  difficult  to  say,  mixed  up  as  all  arms  are  in  such 
confusion  just  as  they  reached  the  ground  last  night,  but  we 


A   SIEGE  111 

guess  them  at  about  fifteen  thousand.  They  have  four  bat- 
teries of  field  guns.  There  they  are  away  to  the  right.  They 
evidently  came  up  together,  and  have  kept  something  like 
order.  We  can  make  out  several  heavy  guns  mixed  up  with 
the  waggons,  but  whether  there  are  ten  or  twenty  of  them  I 
could  give  no  opinion.  Do  you  see  that  large  tent  with  the 
red  and  white  flag?  Those  are  the  colours  of  Ghoolab  Singh, 
and  the  tent  no  doubt  is  occupied  by  his  son,  the  gentleman 
who  was  named  my  successor  a  week  after  the  death  of  the 
Old  Lion.  He  has  been  waiting  some  time,  and  is  likely  to 
wait  longer.  He  is  no  doubt  the  nominal  leader  of  the  expe- 
dition; but  I  believe  that  he  has  none  of  the  talent  of  his 
father  or  uncles,  and  matters  will  be  directed  really  by  the 
chiefs  of  the  army.  I  have  no  doubt  a  council  has  been  going 
on  all  night  as  to  what  the  next  move  shall  be,  and  the  decis- 
ion they  have  probably  arrived  at  is  to  wait  until  they  can 
get  a  better  idea  of  the  fortress  and  its  surroundings." 

A  considerable  movement  was  now  going  on  in  the  enemy's 
camp,  and  the  wind  bore  the  sound  of  trumpets  to  the  fortress. 

"They  are  trying  to  get  into  something  like  "order,"  Nand 
Chund  remarked.  "The  waggons  are  drawing  out  of  the 
mass  to  take  up  their  positions  in  the  rear,  and  the  assembly 
calls  of  the  different  regiments  are  sounding.  Ah !  there  is  a 
party  going  out  to  reconnoitre." 

As  he  spoke  a  party  of  horsemen  rode  out  to  the  left  of  the 
camp.  Several  bright  banners  streamed  in  the  air,  and  an 
escort  of  some  fifty  cavalry  followed  them.  They  mounted 
the  hill  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  valley  until  they  reached 
a  spot  two  or  three  hundred  feet  higher  than  the  summit  of 
the  fortress,  and  just  opposite  to  it.  As  soon  as  their  object 
had  been  made  out  the  colonel  had  sent  word  to  the  gunners 
at  the  batteries  along  that  face  ordering  them  not  to  fire. 

"  I  do  not  wish  to  make  any  more  bitter  enemies,"  he  said 
to  his  officers  in  reply  to  their  look  of  surprise  when  he  issued 
the  order.  "At  present  they  are  only  fighting  against  me  as 


112  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

instruments  of  Ghoolab  Singh,  and  except  on  the  ground  that 
I  am  a  foreigner,  the  soldiers  have  no  animosity  against  me. 
If  we  wjere  now  to  kill  two  or  three  of  their  favourite  leaders, 
and  perhaps  some  of  the  sirdars  who  have  been  bribed  into 
entering  upon  this  business,  it  would  create  an  active  animos- 
ity against  me.  Of  course,  when  fighting  begins  they  must 
all  take  their  chance,  but  I  don't  wish  to  slay  anyone  before 
a  single  shot  has  been  fired  on  their  side." 

The  group  of  officers,  who  were  but  half  a  mile  away,  re- 
mained for  ten  minutes  closely  examining  the  fortress.  They 
then  slowly  returned  to  camp. 

"  Our  guns  would  carry  easily  enough  into  the  midst  of  the 
camp,  sahib,"  one  of  the  officers  remarked. 

"I  know  they  would,  but  I  won't  begin,  for  the  same  rea- 
son that  I  would  not  fire  at  the  group  of  officers.  We  will  let 
them  open  the  ball." 

An  hour  later  a  body  of  men  which  they  estimated  at  five 
thousand  marched  away  with  two  of  the  batteries  of  field  guns, 
and  soon  were  lost  to  sight  as  they  wound  round  the  hills 
skirting  the  valley. 

"We  shall  see  them  at  daylight  to-morrow  established  on 
the  hillside  above  us,"  the  colonel  said.  "I  have  thought 
several  times  of  establishing  a  fort  near  the  crest  there;  but  I 
should  not  be  able  to  give  it  much  support  by  my  guns,  and 
its  garrison  would  not  make  any  prolonged  resistance  when 
they  once  found  themselves  cut  off  altogether  from  us.  With 
troops  one  could  rely  upon  thoroughly,  such  a  fort  would 
immensely  Binder  the  operations,  and  indeed  they  could  do 
nothing  until  it  was  captured. 

"It  is  a  standard  rule  with  us  out  here,  Percy,"  he  said 
afterwards,  "  never  to  count  upon  the  natives  unless  you  are 
with  them  yourself.  The  Sikhs  are  brave,  but  they  want  good 
leaders,  and  are  not  to  be  relied  upon  unless  under  the  eye  of 
an  officer  they  respect.  They  may  hate  us  as  Europeans,  but 
in  the  wars  of  Runjeet  Singh  they  fought  like  lions  under  our 


A    SIEGE  113 

command.  You  will  see  that  that  will  be  their  weak  point  if 
they  come  to  blows  with  the  British.  They  will  fight,  and 
fight  pluckily,  but  without  Europeans  to  lead  them  they  will  fall 
into  disorder,  and  there  will  be  no  one  to  rally  and  control 
them,  to  take  advantage  of  any  temporary  success,  or  to  re- 
trieve a  temporary  failure.  They  don't  know  it  themselves, 
but  they  will  speedily  learn  it.  Given  English  officers,  the 
natives  of  India  fight  as  well  as  our  own  men.  The  Sepoy 
regiments  in  Clive's  days,  and  ever  since,  have  shown  them- 
selves worthy  of  fighting  by  the  side  of  their  white  comrades; 
but  they  would  be  worth  very  little  if  deprived  of  their  Euro- 
pean officers.  Another  thing  against  them  is  the  slowness  with 
which  they  work  their  guns.  A  battery  of  British  artillery 
would  fire  five  shots  while  they  fire  one,  and  their  infantry  are 
proportionately  slow  in  their  movements.  We  have  all  tried, 
but  tried  in  vain,  to  get  them  to  work  with  smartness.  It 
does  not  seem,  however,  to  be  in  them." 

That  night  a  vigilant  watch  was  kept  along  the  northern 
wall,  but  nothing  was  heard;  and  it  was  not  till  an  hour  after 
sunrise  that  a  column  was  seen  coming  along  the  side  of  the 
hill  above  them.  The  guns  were  all  manned  and  ready  for 
action,  but  the  colonel  delayed  giving  the  order  until  the 
enemy  breached  a  sort  of  terrace  on  the  face  of  the  hill  half  a 
mile  away,  and  three  hundred  feet  higher  than  the  level  of  the 
fortress.  "Now,"  he  said,  "we  will  give  them  a  hint  to  come 
no  further.  We  could  not  prevent  their  establishing  them- 
selves on  that  terrace,  but  they  must  learn  that  they  can  come 
no  nearer.  Two  or  three  shots  will  be  a  sufficient  hint." 

The  guns  opened  fire,  and  the  enemy,  who  were  just  com- 
mencing a  further  descent,  retired  hastily,  and  a  few  minutes 
later  their  field  guns  opened  fire.  They  were  no  match,  how- 
ever, for  the  much  heavier  pieces  on  the  walls;  and  after  half 
an  hour's  exchange  of  shots  they  drew  back  their  guns,  two  of 
which  had  been  dismounted  by  well-aimed  shots  from  the  wall. 
Some  of  the  party  established  themselves  well  back  on  the 


114  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

terrace,  where  they  were  out  of  sight  of  the  fortress,  but  the 
main  body  ascended  the  hill  again  and  encamped  on  the  crest. 
Occasionally  a  gun  was  run  forward,  discharged,  and  with- 
drawn; and  to  this  fire  the  garrison  made  no  reply,  the  guns 
being  very  badly  aimed,  some  of  the  shot  flying  right  over  the 
fortress,  while  others  struck  the  ground  outside  the  wall. 

"Now  we  shall  have  quiet  for  a  time,  sahib,"  Nand  Chund 
said  to  Percy,  who  was  standing  next  to  him.  "They  have 
done  so  much,  and  will  want  to  settle  what  the  next  movement 
is  to  be." 

"I  think  it  will  be  our  turn  to  move  next,  Nand  Chund," 
the  colonel,  who  had  overheard  his  remark,  observed.  "To- 
night when  it  gets  dark  we  will  sally  out,  and  see  if  we  cannot 
take  those  gentlemen  with  the  guns  by  surprise." 

"  It  may  be,  colonel,  that  they  will  expect  a  sally,  and  will 
move  their  whole  force  down  again  on  to  the  terrace  after 
nightfall." 

"It  all  depends  who  their  leader  is.  If  he  is  an  enterpris- 
ing fellow,  that  is  what  he  would  do." 

"  Do  you  know,  uncle,  I  have  been  thinking  that  their  camp 
down  in  the  valley  is  smaller  to-day  than  it  was  yesterday." 

"Do  you  think  so,  Percy?  I  will  go  to  the  battery  at  the 
other  end  and  have  a  look  at  it.  It  is  possible  that  they  may 
have  sent  off  another  party  to  join  those  fellows  up  there. 
If  they  have  done  that,  they  intend  to  try  the  effect  of  a  coup 
de  main,  and  to  attack  us  in  earnest  some  time  before  morning. " 

After  a  close  examination  of  the  enemy's  camp,  the  colonel 
and  his  officers  were  all  of  opinion  that  although  it  occupied 
as  much  space  as  before,  there  were  fewer  men  moving  about 
than  upon  the  preceding  day. 

"  You  have  sharp  eyes,  Percy,  and  it  is  well  that  you  noticed 
it.  Had  you  not  done  so  we  might  have  run  our  heads  into 
a  trap,  and  instead  of  surprising  them  been  surprised  our- 
selves, and  that  by  greatly  superior  numbers.  I  shall  abandon 
the  idea  now  and  prepare  to  resist  a  serious  assault  to-night, 


A  SIEGE  115 

and  we  will  have  every  man  capable  of  bearing  arms  in 
readiness.  We  will  keep  only  a  few  men  on  the  walls,  and 
let  the  rest  lie  down  at  once  with  orders  that  they  are  to  sleep 
if  they  can,  as  there  will  be  no  sleep  for  them  to-night.  Nand 
Chund,  do  you  post  half  a  dozen  of  your  men  at  different 
points  on  the  walls;  let  them  keep  a  vigilant  watch  down  upon 
the  town  itself,  and  see  that  no  flag  or  other  signal  is  waved 
from  a  roof  or  window.  It  may  well  be  that  there  has  been 
some  arrangement  made  with  a  traitor  here  to  give  notice  by 
signal  of  any  intended  sortie  on  our  part." 

Following  his  uncle's  advice,  Percy  lay  down  for  some 
hours;  but  he  could  not  sleep,  being  too  excited  at  the  thought 
of  the  conflict  that  would  probably  take  place  during  the 
night.  When  he  went  in  to  dinner  the  colonel  was  absent, 
being  engaged  in  mustering  and  assigning  to  their  various 
posts  the  able-bodied  men  among  the  fugitives.  These  were 
posted  round  the  circuit  of  the  walls,  which  were  all,  with  the 
exception  of  the  northern  face,  entrusted  to  their  charge. 

"It  is  probable,"  he  told  them,  "that  the  enemy  will  make 
a  diversion  on  this  side  when  they  attack  on  the  other.  It 
will  not,  however,  be  serious,  for  they  can  do  nothing  unless 
with  the  assistance  of  friends  on  the  wall." 

Among  the  servants  of  the  traders  were  a  good  many  who 
had  served  in  the  army.  These  were  stationed  at  the  guns, 
and  enjoined  to  open  fire  upon  the  enemy's  camp  if  they 
brought  the  heavy  artillery  they  had  there  into  play.  To  each 
battery  and  section  of  the  wall  a  number  of  blue  lights  and 
fire-balls  were  served  out — one  or  more  of  the  former  was  to 
be  lighted  every  few  minutes,  and  the  fire-balls  occasionally 
thrown  into  the  valley,  so  that  no  considerable  body  of  the 
enemy  could  escape  observation.  The  traders  were  appointed 
as  commanders  at  the  various  points.  Of  the  garrison  a  thou- 
sand men  were  placed  on  the  north  wall;  the  rest  were  sta- 
tioned close  at  hand  in  readiness  to  support  them,  or  to 
move  to  any  point  threatened. 

i 


116  THROUGH  THE  SIKH   WAR 

"Percy,"  the  Ranee — as  she  was  usually  called  in  the 
fortress — said,  as  they  sat  waiting  the  colonel's  return,  "I 
want  you  to  devote  yourself  to  the  protection  of  my  husband 
to-night.  I  have  no  fear  of  the  wall  being  carried  by  assault, 
it  is  too  strong  and  will  be  too  well  defended  for  that,  but  I 
<io  fear  for  his  life.  That  we  have  one  or  more  traitors  here 
we  are  sure,  and  an  occasion  like  this  with  its  confusion  and 
•excitement  will  afford  them  just  the  opportunity  they  desire. 
When  all  are  engaged  in  repulsing  the  attack  of  an  enemy  it 
would  be  easy  for  an  assassin  to  use  knife  or  pistol  without 
fear  of  the  action  being  noticed,  and  the  colonel  will  be  think- 
ing of  nothing  but  directing  his  men  and  repulsing  the  attack. 
Therefore,  I  pray  you  station  yourself  near  him.  Leave  the 
fighting  to  others,  and  keep  your  eye  closely  upon  those  about 
him,  and  your  pistol  in  your  hand  in  readiness  for  action." 

"  I  will  do  so,  aunt.  If  there  is  anyone  here  who  wants  to 
assassinate  him,  it  is  just  the  time  he  would  choose  for  the 
attempt,  I  think  it  would  be  as  well  to  ask  Nand  Chund  to 
pick  me  out  four  of  his  best  men,  and  to  hand  them  over  to 
my  orders.  However  sharply  I  might  look  out  in  the  dark- 
ness and  confusion,  someone  might  spring  suddenly  forward 
upon  uncle  from  the  side  opposite  that  on  which  I  was  stand- 
ing; but  with  five  of  us  on  the  watch,  we  ought  to  be  able  to 
prevent  anyone  getting  near  him.  I  will  tell  no  one  the  pur- 
pose for  which  I  require  the  men,  and  will  bid  Nand  Chund 
be  equally  silent.  There  is  no  saying  who  the  traitor  may 
be,  perhaps  someone  we  have  never  thought  of  suspecting; 
and  if  he  knew  we  were  on  the  watch  he  might  drop  it  alto- 
gether. I  only  hope  he  will  try  it,  it  would  be  the  best  thing 
that  could  happen,  as  it  would  relieve  us  from  the  uncertainty 
we  have  been  feeling.  Nand  Chund  himself  with  the  rest  of 
his  men  will,  I  know,  be  on  duty  here;  for  I  heard  uncle  give 
him  his  orders,  which  were  that  he  was  to  suffer  nothing,  not 
even  the  entry  of  the  enemy  into  the  town,  to  induce  him  to 
leave  the  house,  as  traitors  would  be  very  likely  to  take  advan- 


A  SIEGE  117 

tage  of  the  confusion  to  rush  in  and  perhaps  to  kill  you,  and 
plunder  and  fire  the  place.  There  will  be  one  advantage  of 
my  having  these  men  with  me.  Uncle  might  send  me  round 
with  a  message  to  some  other  part  of  the  wall,  and  I  should 
be  obliged  for  a  time  to  be  absent;  but  with  them  round  him, 
I  could  leave  him  for  a  few  minutes  without  fear." 

"Do  not  do  it  if  you  can  help  it,  Percy;  the  night  will  be 
dark,  and  if  you  keep  well  behind  him  he  may  not  notice  you, 
for  he  will  have  other  things  to  think  about.  Should  he  send 
you  on  a  message,  take  it  yourself  if  it  is  of  great  importance; 
if  not,  send  one  of  the  men  in  your  place.  I  rely  upon  you 
more  than  on  anyone  else.  Ah,  here  is  Roland  at  last." 

By  ten  o'clock  everyone  was  at  his  appointed  post.  The 
colonel  took  Percy  with  him  on  a  circuit  round  the  walls, 
where  he  exhorted  everyone  to  be  watchful  and  vigilant  and  to 
preserve  absolute  silence  until  they  could  hear  the  enemy  in 
motion  down  the  valley. 

"I  have  no  fear  there  whatever,"  he  said,  as  he  returned  to 
the  northern  wall.  "  Even  were  there  a  score  of  men  among 
our  troops  who  have  been  bought  over  to  play  a  treacherous 
part,  they  could  do  nothing  where  there  are  so  many  around 
them  on  the  watch.  Treachery  strikes  when  least  expected. 
It  is  powerless  among  a  multitude,  and  all  the  traders  and 
others  from  the  towns  know  that  their  lives  are  at  stake,  and 
are  just  as  well  aware  as  I  am  that  the  place  on  that  side  is 
all  but  impregnable  unless  the  assailants  were  aided  from 
within.  They  can  be  trusted,  therefore,  to  keep  their  eyes 
well  open.  I  shall  not  assign  you  any  special  duty,  Percy. 
I  have  told  Ram  Bund,  your  commander,  that  I  shall  keep  you 
near  myself,  but  there  is  no  occasion  for  you  to  stay  close  to 
me.  If  you  see  any  point  specially  threatened  you  can  go- 
there  and  encourage  the  men  by  your  voice  and  presence,  but 
I  have  no  fear  whatever  that  they  will  gain  a  footing  on  the 
wall. 

"  I  shall  take  my  post  over  the  gateway,  that  is  where  I  fancy 


118  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   \VAR 

the  brunt  of  the  attack  will  fall.  They  will  either  try  to  fill 
up  the  cut  there  with  faggots  or  bundles  of  grass,  or  throw 
planks  over  and  then  blow  in  the  gate.  At  least  that  is  how 
we  should  act  under  the  same  circumstances,  and  as,  if  they 
make  the  attack,  they  must  have  some  fellow  of  uncommon 
enterprise  in  command,  it  is  likely  he  will  proceed  in  the  same 
course.  As  for  the  wall,  it  is  fifty  feet  from  the  parapet  to 
the  bottom  of  the  cut,  and  there  are  no  native  Indian  troops 
who  would  try  to  scale  such  a  wall  on  ladders  in  the  face  of 
a  strong  and  determined  garrison.  Of  course,  if  they  could 
have  brought  their  heavy  guns  up  here,  made  a  breach  in  the 
wall,  and  half  filled  up  the  cut  with  its  ruins,  it  would  have 
been  a  different  affair  altogether,  though  even  then  I  feel  sure 
that  we  could  beat  them  off.  As  it  is  they  can  only  reckon  on 
finding  us  quite  unprepared  for  an  attack,  and  on  carrying  the 
place  by  a  sudden  rush.  I  believe  myself  that  a  quarter  of 
an  hour  will  see  the  end  of  it,  and  that  as  soon  as  they  under- 
stand we  are  fully  prepared  they  will  give  up  the  idea  as 
hopeless.  Now  we  have  nothing  to  do  but  to  wait.  I  expect 
the  attack  about  an  hour  before  daybreak,  which  is  the  hour  at 
which  they  will  think  they  are  most  likely  to  find  the  sentinels 
drowsy. " 


CHAPTER  VII 

STARTLING   NEWS 

THE  hours  passed  slowly  as  the  garrison  awaited  the  attack 
of  the  enemy.  The  men  had  been  told  that  they  could  all 
lie  down  where  they  stood,  leaving  only  the  officers  and  sen- 
tries on  watch;  and  the  top  of  the  wall  and  the  yard  behind 
were  crowded  with  sleeping  figures  wrapt  in  their  mantles. 
About  two  o'clock  those  on  watch  were  sensible  of  a  low  con- 
fused sound  in  the  air. 

"They  are  moving,1'  the  colonel  said  to  Percy,  who  was 
sitting  on  the  parapet,  against  which  he  was  leaning.  "  It  is 
probable  that  they  have  been  ordered  to  leave  their  shoes 
behind  them;  and  in  any  case  the  walk  of  a  Sikh  in  his  soft 
leather  shoes  is  almost  noiseless,  besides  they  are  as  yet  a  long 
distance  away.  They  are  coming  down  the  hill,"  he  contin- 
ued a  quarter  of  an  hour  later;  "the  noise  is  certainly  more 
distinct.  But  I  give  them  credit  for  the  manner  of  their  ap- 
proach. We  should  scarce  notice  the  noise  if  we  were  not 
prepared  for  it,  and  a  drowsy  sentry  would  take  it  for  the 
wind  rising  among  the  hills.  One  can  hardly  imagine  that 
ten  thousand  men  are  moving  down  towards  us." 

Two  or  three  of  the  officers  came  up  to  report  that  they  were 
sure  the  enemy  were  stirring,  and  the  colonel  ordered  them 
to  get  all  the  men  quietly  under  arms.  Another  half-hour 
passed. 

119 


120  THROUGH    THE   SIKH    WAR 

"They  are  a  long  time  in  coming,  uncle,"  Percy  said  in  a 
low  voice. 

"They  are;  they  might  have  been  here  long  before  this.  If 
I  did  not  want  to  give  them  a  lesson  I  would  send  up  a  rocket 
in  order  to  find  out  what  they  are  doing.  I  believe  they  are 
only  a  short  distance  away  now,  but  we  will  wait  for  them  to 
begin." 

In  a  short  time  they  were  convinced  that  the  enemy  were 
within  a  hundred  yards  at  most  from  the  wall.  Quiet  as  their 
movements  were,  a  low  hum  as  of  orders  being  given  in  sup- 
pressed tones  could  be  heard.  On  the  walls  all  were  in  readi- 
ness. At  a  distance  of  a  few  yards  apart  men  stood  with 
port-fires  in  one  hand  and  matches  in  the  other,  while  between 
them  lines  of  muskets  rested  on  the  parapet.  Several  times 
the  watchers  thought  they  could  make  out  dim  figures  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  deep  cut  at  the  foot  of  the  wall.  Sud- 
denly a  bright  light  burst  out  exactly  opposite  the  gate,  and  a 
moment  later  twenty  guns  opened,  sending  their  balls  crashing 
through  the  drawbridge  and  gate.  At  the  same  instant  a 
rocket  soared  into  the  air  from  over  the  gateway,  and  a  mo- 
ment later  a  line  of  blue  lights  flashed  out  along  the  wall.  A 
mass  of  men  were  rushing  forward  towards  the  gate,  all  carry- 
ing great  bundles  on  their  heads,  while  a  tremendous  yell  burst 
from  thousands  of  throats.  It  was  answered  by  one  of  defi- 
ance from  the  wall. 

The  assailants  paused  for  a  moment  in  astonishment  at  the 
line  of  lights,  and  the  proof  that  the  garrison  were  prepared; 
out  the  pause  was  momentary,  and  they  rushed  forward  again. 
The  leaders  were  but  a  few  yards  from  the  edge  of  the  cut 
when  the  colonel  shouted  "  Fire ! "  A  flash  of  flame  ran 
along  the  wall,  and  twenty  guns  loaded  to  the  muzzle  with 
grape  poured  their  contents  among  the  enemy.  Like  a  field 
of  wheat  levelled  by  the  blast  of  a  tornado  the  rnob  of  men 
were  swept  to  the  earth,  the  few  that  remained  erect  throwing 
down  their  bundles  and  flying  for  their  lives.  Percy,  mind- 


PERCY    SHOOTS   THE   ASSASSIN    PURING   THE   ATTACK    ON   THE   FORTRESS. 


STARTLING   NEWS  121 

ful  of  his  special  work,  had,  the  moment  the  light  flashed  out 
opposite  the  gate,  summoned  the  four  men,  who  were  stand- 
ing a  short  distance  away,  and  stood  on  the  watch  near  his 
uncle. 

For  a  few  minutes  there  was  a  duel  between  the  guns  of  the 
fortress  and  the  Sikh  cannon,  which  had  been  drawn  down  by 
hand,  the  wheels  thickly  wrapped  with  cotton  cloths  to  pre- 
vent the  slightest  sound  being  made.  The  infantry  kept  up 
a  storm  of  fire,  which  was  replied  to  by  volleys  of  musketry 
from  the  defenders.  The  din  was  tremendous,  and  presently 
another  body  of  men  carrying  long  beams  and  planks  again 
rushed  forward.  Many  of  them  reached  the  edge  of  the  moat 
and  tried  to  push  the  poles  across,  but  the  destruction  was  so 
great  from  the  musketry  fire  from  the  walls,  and  from  six  guns 
which  had  been  kept  in  reserve  loaded  with  grape,  that  the 
survivors  again  fell  back  followed  by  the  exultant  shouts  of 
the  garrison. 

At  the  moment  that  they  had  advanced  the  two  port-fires 
over  the  gate  went  out  simultaneously,  and  before  others  could 
be  lighted  Percy  saw  a  figure  that  had  been  crouching  under 
the  parapet  a  short  distance  off  spring  forward.  The  guard 
nearest  to  him  also  observed  the  movement,  and  threw  himself 
in  the  man's  way.  A  knife  flashed  in  the  air  and  he  fell. 
His  assailant  then  sprung  towards  the  colonel,  whose  back  was 
turned  to  him,  when  a  ball  from  Percy's  pistol  struck  him  in 
the  head  and  he  fell  dead  in  his  tracks.  The  pistol-shot  at- 
tracted no  attention  amid  the  roar  of  firearms,  and  Percy, 
without  paying  further  attention  to  the  fallen  man,  ordered 
the  remaining  three  guards  to  redouble  their  vigilance. 

"The  scoundrel  may  not  be  alone,"  he  said.  "The  attempt 
may  be  repeated." 

With  the  retirement  of  the  second  body  of  men  charged  to 
bridge  the  fosse  the  enemy  lost  heart.  It  was  evident  even 
to  the  most  determined  that  success  was  impossible,  now  that 
the  garrison  were  prepared.  The  guns,  too,  suffered  so  terri- 


122  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

bly  from  the  heavier  metal  of  those  on  the  wall,  that  half  of 
them  lay  dismounted,  and  the  gunners  would  no  longer  work 
the  others  in  the  face  of  the  heavy  fire  that  mowed  them  down. 
The  yells  subsided  and  the  fire  ceased,  and  as  noiselessly  as 
they  had  come  the  assailants  glided  away  into  the  darkness, 
pursued,  however,  for  some  time  by  the  bullets  and  shot  of 
the  defenders.  Convinced  that  there  was  no  fear  of  a  repeti- 
tion of  the  assault,  the  colonel  ordered  the  greater  part  of  the 
troops  back  to  their  quarters. 

Now  that  the  din  near  at  hand  had  ceased,  the  rattle  of 
musketry  and  the  boom  of  guns  could  be  heard  from  the  other 
walls.  The  colonel  hurried  away  to  see  what  was  going  on 
there.  He  found  that  the  moment  the  firing  began  on  the 
north  face  of  the  fortress  it  broke  out  from  the  valleys  on 
either  side,  where  large  numbers  of  men  had  stolen  up  in  the 
darkness,  while  at  the  same  time  the  heavy  guns  in  the  camp 
had  also  opened  fire.  The  defenders  had  at  once  replied,  and 
the  fire  had  been  continued  on  both  sides,  but  it  had  begun  to 
die  away  on  the  side  of  the  assailants  as  soon  as  it  ceased  on 
the  northern  face.  The  colonel  sent  for  a  party  of  artillery- 
men to  aid  the  men  working  the  guns,  and  ordered  a  steady 
fire  to  be  kept  up  on  the  camp,  and  then  dismissed  his  allies 
to  their  tents  and  returned  himself  to  his  house,  to  which 
Percy  had  gone  as  soon  as  the  fighting  was  over  to  tell  his 
aunt  that  the  attack  had  been  repulsed  and  that  all  was  well. 

"Then  my  fears  were  groundless,  Percy?" 

"No,  aunt,  they  were  the  means  of  saving  my  uncle's  life," 
and  he  then  related  the  attempt  at  assassination  and  its  result. 

"  Heaven  be  praised  !  "  she  said,  bursting  into  tears.  "  I 
had  a  presentiment  of  evil,  as  I  have  more  than  once  had  be- 
fore when  his  life  has  been  threatened.  Thank  God  the  dan- 
ger has  come  and  gone  and  that  he  is  still  unharmed.  Did 
you  know  who  the  man  was?" 

"  I  did  not  notice,  aunt,  or  think  of  looking  at  him  after  he 
had  fallen.  There  was  such  a  tremendous  roar  going  on  that  I 


STARTLING   NEWS  123 

felt  quite  confused,  and  thought  of  nothing  but  that  the  attack 
might  be  repeated.  I  will  go  and  see  who  it  is  as  soon  as 
it  is  light." 

By  this  time  some  hot  coffee  had  been  prepared,  and  Percy 
had  already  partaken  of  it  when  the  colonel  returned.  As 
he  entered  his  wife  threw  herself  into  his  arms. 

"Thank  God  you  have  returned  safe,  Roland,  and  have 
once  more  escaped  the  dangers  that  threatened  you." 

"The  dangers  were  not  great  this  time,  love,  being  only 
from  a  stray  bullet;  for  the  artillery  confined  their  fire  to  the 
gate,  in  hopes  no  doubt  that  a  lucky  shot  might  bring  the 
drawbridge  down.  Not  that  this  was  likely,  for  I  had  it  fas- 
tened up  by  half  a  dozen  chains,  anyone  of  which  would  have 
held  it." 

"  It  was  not  the  bullets  of  the  enemy,  but  the  knife  of  an 
assassin  that  I  feared,"  she  said. 

"  Pooh,  pooh,  my  love !  you  are  always  dreaming  of  assas- 
sins." 

"And  not  without  reason,  Roland;  had  it  not  been  for 
Percy's  pistol  you  would  not  be  alive  now." 

The  colonel  looked  surprised  at  Percy.  "What  does  this 
mean,  lad?  I  did  not  hear  you  fire,  and,  indeed,  did  not 
notice  you  from  the  time  when  the  attack  began  to  the  time 
when  it  was  over.  Do  you  mean  to  say  that  my  life  was 
attempted,  and  that  you  saved  me?" 

"  It  was  aunt's  doing,  not  mine,  uncle."  Percy  then  related 
the  injunctions  his  aunt  had  given  him  and  the  results. 

"You  have  saved  my  life  again,  Mahtab,"  he  said  embracing 
his  wife  tenderly.  "At  least  this  time  you  and  Percy  have 
done  it  between  you.  And  who  is  the  traitor?  " 

"  That  Percy  does  not  know;  he  did  not  think  of  examining 
the  body." 

"Then  we  will  do  so  at  once,"  the  colonel  said,  putting  on 
his  cap  again.  "  Daylight  will  soon  be  breaking,  and  as  soon 
as  it  does  the  soldiers  will  be  at  work  removing  from  the  wall 


124  THROUGH   THE    bIKH    WAR 

the  bodies  of  those  who  fell  in  the  fight.  I  heard  just  now 
that  there  were  twenty-five  men  killed  by  the  enemy's  musket- 
fire,  and  another  twenty  or  thirty  hit  in  the  hand  or  arm  as 
they  fired  over  the  wall.  Come  along,  Percy,  you  will  know 
exactly  where  the  man  fell." 

Calling  a  couple  of  his  guards  and  bidding  one  bring  a 
lantern  with  him,  the  colonel,  accompanied  by  Percy,  went  to 
the  wall,  where  the  latter  at  once  pointed  out  the  body  of  the 
man  he  had  shot,  lying  close  to  that  of  the  guard  who  had  fallen 
by  his  knife. 

"Throw  the  light  on  his  face,"  the  colonel  said,  and  as  the 
soldier  did  so  he  uttered  an  exclamation  of  surprise  and 
disgust. 

"  It  is  Azim  Bund — the  scoundrel !  He  was  the  last  man  I 
should  have  suspected.  He  was  penniless  when  I  picked  him 
up  years  ago.  He  professed  the  greatest  attachment  for  me, 
and  being  clever  and  shrewd  I  raised  him  step  by  step  until 
at  last  he  became  my  confidential  steward.  He  was  bound  to 
me  by  every  tie  of  gratitude,  and  I  certainly  thought  him 
absolutely  devoted  to  my  interests.  Ever  since  the  attempt 
to  seize  you  on  your  way  here  showed  that  there  was  a  traitor 
in  the  fortress,  he  has  appeared  most  earnest  in  his  attempts 
to  discover  him;  and  to  think  that  all  this  time  it  was  the 
scoundrel  himself !  Mahtab  has  never  liked  the  man,  though 
she  never  suspected  his  fidelity.  I  suppose  he  had  been 
heavily  bribed,  and  had  the  promise  of  some  good  place  from 
Ghoolab  Singh.  Well,  he  richly  deserved  the  fate  that  has 
befallen  him.  I  am  glad  that  it  was  not  a  soldier,  for  I  like 
to  think  that  all  my  men  are  faithful  to  me  to  the  last. 

"  That  was  a  good  shot  of  yours,  Percy,  your  ball  struck  him 
just  in  the  centre  of  the  forehead.  Well,  there  is  one  thing, 
there  need  be  no  fear  at  present  of  another  attempt  of  this 
kind.  This  fellow  would  never  have  dared  to  make  a  confi- 
dant. An  officer  might  enlist  some  of  his  men  in  such  a  plot, 
but  a  man  in  Azim's  position  would  not  venture  to  do  so.  A 


STARTLING   NEWS  125 

steward  is  not  often  popular  with  the  men  he  looks  after,  and 
I  don't  think  this  fellow  was  any  exception  to  the  rule.  Do 
you  two  men  remain  with  the  body  until  the  morning,  and  see 
that  no  one  touches  it.  You  can  search  his  pockets  now,  but 
it  is  not  likely  that  such  a  cunning  knave  would  be  carrying 
any  documents  that  would  incriminate  him,  about  on  his 
person." 

"There  is  nothing  in  his  pockets,  sahib,"  one  of  the  sol- 
diers said,  "but  I  can  feel  he  has  a  heavy  belt  round  his 
body." 

"Take  it  off  and  examine  it." 

It  was  found  that  a  hundred  gold  mohurs  were  sewn  up  in 
the  belt.  "The  first  instalment  of  the  price  of  my  life,"  the 
colonel  said.  "Here  is  one  apiece  for  you,  men;  the  rest 
shall  be  laid  out  in  charity.  There  must  be  scores  of  people 
who  have  been  made  homeless  in  the  last  day  or  two. 

"  In  the  morning  make  a  thorough  search  of  the  fellow's 
clothes,  he  may  have  some  paper  sewn  up  in  them.  Now, 
Percy,  we  will  go  back  to  the  house." 

The  Ranee  was  greatly  agitated  when  she  heard  who  was  the 
author  of  the  attack  upon  the  colonel's  life. 

"It  is  terrible,  Roland,  to  think  that  we  can  trust  no  one, 
and  that  for  months  your  life  has  been  endangered  by  that 
man.  I  cannot  think  why  he  waited  so  long." 

"He  was  waiting  for  a  safe  opportunity,  as  he  thought,"  the 
colonel  replied.  "  Our  private  apartments  are  always  locked 
at  night,  and  during  the  day  the  opportunities  for  putting  a 
knife  into  me  without  suspicion  falling  upon  him  were  not 
frequent.  No  doubt  he  knew  that  Ghoolab  was  going  to  send 
an  army  here,  and  it  was  probably  arranged  that  the  affair 
should  not  take  place  until  it  arrived,  as  with  me  out  of  the 
way  the  garrison  would  probably  surrender,  and  Ghoolab's  son 
•would  only  have  to  enter  and  take  possession;  and  would, 
moreover,  gain  a  certain  amount  of  credit  for  what  would 
be  regarded  as  his  capture  of  the  olace.  He  might,  perhaps, 


126  THROUGH  THE   SIKH  WAR 

have  done  it  at  night,  but  your  idea  of  putting  Nand  Chund 
and  the  guard  here  would  altogether  upset  that  plan,  and  drive 
him  to  choose  some  other  opportunity.  At  any  rate  we  can 
sleep  in  peace  now.  It  is  morally  certain  that  Azim  would 
not  run  the  risk  of  having  an  accomplice,  especially  as  he 
would  regard  it  as  certain  that  he  would  be  able  to  carry  out 
his  design  without  aid." 

The  morning  light  showed  how  terrible  had  been  the  effect 
of  the  fire  of  the  besieged  upon  the  assailants.  The  ground 
for  two  hundred  yards  back  from  the  fosse  was  thickly  strewn 
with  dead,  and  around  the  spot  where  the  cannon  stood  the 
men  who  had  served  them  lay  in  heaps.  After  sending  out  a 
party  to  make  sure  that  the  enemy  had  all  retired  right,  a 
force  was  sent  out  to  collect  and  bring  in  the  deserted  guns 
and  the  wounded.  There  were  over  three  hundred  of  the 
latter,  and  eight  hundred  dead  were  counted.  Shortly  after- 
wards two  men  with  a  white  flag  were  seen  coming  down  the 
hill. 

The  colonel  and  an  officer  went  out  to  meet  them,  and  it  was 
found  that  they  were  the  bearers  of  a  request  to  be  permitted 
to  carry  away  the  dead.  This  the  colonel  readily  granted, 
being  well  pleased  indeed  at  being  saved  the  trouble  of  bury- 
ing them,  which  would  have  been  a  work  of  great  trouble  and 
labour,  owing  to  the  shallowness  of  the  soil.  A  large  body  of 
men  came  down  for  the  purpose,  but  it  was  nightfall  before 
the  last  of  the  bodies  were  carried  away.  The  enemy's  camp 
in  the  valley  had,  at  daybreak,  been  removed  out  on  to  the 
plain,  a  mile  and  a  half  farther  away,  so  as  to  be  beyond  the 
range  of  the  guns. 

Late  in  the  afternoon  a  large  force  was  seen  to  march  in 
there,  and  the  garrison  had  no  doubt  that  this  was  the  main 
body  of  the  troops  who  had  attacked  them  in  the  night. 

A  week  passed  without  any  further  movement,  and  then  it 
was  noticed  one  morning  that  the  tents  had  been  struck,  and 
shortly  afterwards  the  whole  army  was  seen  to  march  away  to 


STARTLING   NEWS 


the  south.     Some  of  the  merchants  at  once  sent  off  messengers 
to  gather  news,  and  by  nightfall  the  colonel  learnt  that  it 


reported  that  the  mother  of  the  maharajah  had  consented  to 

the  demands  of  the  army  to  make  war  against  the  British.     An    **> 


officer  who  had  passed  through  the  nearest  town  had  stated 
that  he  was  the  bearer  of  despatches,  ordering  the  force  who 
were  besieging  the  fortress  to  return  at  once  to  Lahore. 

"That  must  have  been  very  welcome  news  for  every  man  in 
camp,"  the  colonel  said.  "The  soldiers  must  be  already  sick 
of  the  business,  which  must  have  cost  them  at  least  a  thousand 
men,  counting  those  that  died  after  the  fight  from  their 
wounds;  and  they  must  have  seen  well  enough  that  this  was 
nothing  to  what  the  loss  would  be  before  the  place  was  cap- 
tured. The  leaders  must  be  even  more  glad;  the  fact  that 
no  movement  has  been  made  since  the  repulse  shows  that  they 
are  at  their  wits'  end  as  to  what  their  next  move  should  be. 
They  must  have  known  that  another  repulse  might  cause  a 
mutiny  among  the  troops,  and  might  even  cost  them  their 
lives.  They  must  have  been  glad  indeed  at  the  news  of  their 
recall. 

"And  now,  Percy,  we  must  lose  no  time  in  warning  our 
friends  of  what  is  intended.  They  may  have  got  news  already 
from  Lahore ;  but  we  cannot  risk  that — their  agents  there  may 
be  imprisoned  or  killed,  therefore  you  had  better  prepare  to 
start  for  Loodiana  in  an  hour's  time.  Nand  Chund  shall  go 
with  you  again  with  fifty  men.  There  will  no  doubt  be  many 
sirdars  moving  with  their  followers  towards  Lahore,  and  you 
will  therefore  excite  little  attention;  and  if  questioned,  Nand 
Chund  will  say  that  he  is  on  his  way  to  join  the  army.  No, 
it  will  not  be  quite  true;  but  that  is  a  matter  that  will  not  rest 
at  all  heavily  on  his  conscience.  Lying  is  not  considered 
a  great  moral  offence  at  any  time  by  the  Sikhs,  or  indeed  by 
any  natives  of  India;  and  to  deceive  an  enemy  in  time  of 
war,  is  considered  absolutely  meritorious.  There  will  be  no 
occasion  for  you  to  say  anything  one  way  or  another;  he  will 


128  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

appear  as  the  head  of  the  expedition,  and  you  will  pass  unno- 
ticed and  unquestioned.  Nand  Chund  is  perfectly  capable 
of  talking  for  himself  and  half  a  dozen  others.  Fondness  for 
using  his  tongue  at  all  times  is  one  of  his  principal  failings."' 

"Am  I  to  come  straight  back  again,  uncle?  " 

The  colonel  thought  for  a  minute  or  two.  "  I  will  leave 
that  entirely  in  your  hands,  Percy;  you  are  old  enough  now 
to  act  on  your  own  account.  If  you  can  be  useful — and  it  is 
probable  that  you  may  be  very  useful  owing  to  your  acquaint- 
ance with  the  language  and  the  knowledge  that  you  have 
gained  of  the  people — to  the  Resident  at  Loodiana,  I  should 
say  that  it  would  be  best  for  you  to  put  yourself  at  his  service. 
It  would  be  a  very  useful  beginning  for  you,  and  would  give 
you  a  claim  that  might  be  of  great  advantage  to  you  in  the 
future.  Besides,  I  should  think  you  would  wish  to  see  what 
is  going  on,  and  there  are  likely  to  be  some  stirring  events  in 
the  next  few  months.  Here  we  shall  have  a  quiet  time  of  it, 
for  with  a  war  with  England  on  their  hands  no  one  will  think 
of  troubling  about  us,  and  they  will  need  every  man  for  the 
work  they  have  cut  out  for  themselves.  Do  you  agree  with 
me,  Mahtab?  " 

"Yes,  I  shall  be  sorry,  very  sorry  for  him  to  go;  but  I  think 
it  would  be  best  for  him.  You  always  tell  me  that  if  my  peo- 
ple go  to  war  with  yours  it  is  sure  to  end  in  the  Punjaub  being 
annexed.  There  will  then  be  no  career  for  him  here,  and  it 
will  be  better  so  since  his  life  would  be,  as  yours  has  been, 
one  of  constant  danger.  Thus  then,  it  will  be  much  better 
for  him  to  make  friends  with  officers  in  the  Company's  ser- 
vice, so  that  he  may,  as  you  have  pointed  out  many  times, 
become  an  officer  of  theirs  when  they  are  masters  of  the 
Punjaub." 

"You  will  want  a  servant;  indeed  you  had  better  have  two. 
They  must  be  trusty  men  above  all  things,  and  shrewd  fellows 
too,  whom  you  can,  if  necessary,  despatch  on  difficult  errands. 
I  should  say  you  had  better  let  Nand  Chund  pick  you  out  two 
of  his  men,  unless  you  have  any  fancy  yourself." 


STARTLING   NEWS  129 

"  He  spoke  very  highly  to  me  of  those  he  chose  for  me  last 
night,  uncle.  However,  I  will  speak  to  him." 

"Do  so,  Percy;  a  man  may  be  faithful  and  an  excellent 
guard,  and  yet  not  be  the  one  you  would  choose  as  a  servant. 
You  want  two  cheery  good-tempered  fellows,  who  will  always 
do  what  they  are  told  without  grumbling.  I  should  say  that 
you  had  better  have  Pathans,  for  a  Sikh's  sympathies  would 
certainly  be  with  his  countrymen.  I  will  walk  down  with  you 
myself  and  have  a  chat  with  Nand  Chund;  next  to  a  good 
horse  and  good  arms,  a  good  servant  is  the  most  important 
point  on  entering  on  a  campaign;  a  handy  fellow  will  make 
you  comfortable  under  almost  all  circumstances,  while  with 
one  who  has  not  a  knack  of  cooking,  or  of  managing  things 
for  your  comfort,  you  will  be  in  all  sorts  of  straits," 

When  the  matter  was  explained  to  the  officer  he  said :  "  You 
could  not  do  better  than  take  Akram  Chunder,  he  is  a  Pathan, 
and  one  of  the  men  you  had  last  night  He  was  Sohan  Verdi's 
own  man  for  a  time;  but  the  major  is  hot-tempered,  and  spoke 
sharply  to  him  one  day,  and  he  chose  to  go  back  into  the 
ranks  again.  Sohan  has  told  me  more  than  once  that  he  was 
one  of  the  best  men  he  ever  had.  He  is  a  good  soldier,  he 
has  been  in  your  service  for  ten  years,  and  he  has  a  high 
character  for  coi:rage.  I  do  not  think  that  the  young  sahib 
can  do  better  than  take  him.  As  to  the  other  he  shall  have 
my  own  man,  Bhop  Lai.  He  is  an  invaluable  man  in  the 
field,  merry,  good-tempered,  eager  to  please,  ready  to  do  any- 
thing for  his  master's  comfort.  Here,  however,  he  has  been 
too  long  inactive,  and  is  getting  idle.  Were  I  going  on  a 
campaign  I  should  be  sorry  indeed  to  part  with  him;  but  as 
it  is  I  can  find  a  roan  who  will  suit  me  just  as  well,  and  he  is 
the  very  man  for  the  young  sahib;  he  is  intelligent  and  trust- 
worthy, a  good  groom  and  cook." 

"Then  Percy  cannot  do  better  than  try  them.  Send  for 
them  to  come  to  my  house  at  once,  I  will  myself  speak  to 
them  and  see  how  they  like  the  proposal;  a  man  who  goes 


130  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

unwillingly  had  much  better  stop  behind.  I  am  obliged  to 
you,  Nand  Chund,  for  giving  up  your  man  to  my  nephew. " 

Ten  minutes  later  the  servant  announced  that  the  two  men 
were  at  the  door,  and  they  were  at  once  brought  in. 

"My  nephew  is  going  to  Loodiana,"  the  colonel  began, 
"and  it  maybe  that  he  will  remain  with  his  friends.  You 
have,  of  course,  both  heard  the  news  that  the  maharanee  has 
yielded  to  the  wishes  of  the  army,  and  that  they  are  going  to 
war  with  the  English.  My  nephew  is  going  to  join  his  own 
people,  and  will,  I  daresay,  remain  with  them  until  the  war 
is  over.  He  wants  two  servants,  good  fellows  who  can  be 
thoroughly  relied  upon,  who  can  look  after  his  comfort  in  the 
field,  carry  messages  if  necessary  from,  one  end  of  the  country 
to  the  other,  and  who  can  be  relied  upon  to  be  thoroughly 
faithful  and  devoted  to  him.  I  have  consulted  Nand  Chund, 
and  he  has  strongly  recommended  you  both.  I  do  not  wish 
you  to  go  unless  you  are  perfectly  willing  to  do  so.  While 
you  are  with  him,  you  will  receive  double  pay,  and  a  present 
will  not  be  wanting  when  he  returns  here  if  he  gives  a  good 
report  on  your  services.  Now,  what  do  you  say?  " 

Both  men  expressed  their  willingness  to  follow  Percy,  and 
it  was  evident  by  their  manner  that  they  considered  it  no 
small  honour  to  have  been  selected  to  attend  upon  the  col- 
onel's nephew. 

"That  is  settled  then,"  the  colonel  said.  "I  need  tell  you 
nothing  about  your  duties,  for  you  are  both  accustomed  to  the 
work.  I  will  see  that  you  are  well  mounted.  Have  you  each 
good  arms  and  a  brace  of  pistols?"  Both  replied  in  the 
affirmative.  "  Make  your  preparations  at  once.  Nand  Chund 
will  start  in  half  an  hour  with  fifty  men  to  escort  my  nephew 
to  Loodiana." 

The  men  saluted  and  retired,  and  the  colonel  gave  orders 
that  two  good  horses  should  be  picked  out  for  them.  Three 
quarters  of  an  hour  later  Percy  rode  out  from  the  gate  of  the 
fortress  with  his  escort,  his  two  followers  falling  in  in  the  rear. 


STARTLING   NEWS 

Being  this  time  unencumbered  by  baggage  animals,  the  march 
was  more  rapid  than  it  had  been  on  the  way  up.  As  the 
country  was  full  of  armed  parties  making  their  way  to  Lahore, 
their  passage  attracted  no  attention  until  they  turned  off  from 
the  road  to  that  city.  After  that  they  avoided  towns,  and 
riding  without  a  halt  for  twelve  hours  they  crossed  the  Sutlej 
on  the  evening  of  the  fifth  day,  and  on  the  following  morning 
rode  into  Loodiana.  A  considerable  change  had  taken  place 
since  Percy  had  left  it  six  months  before.  Then  there  were 
but  two  or  three  battalions  of  troops  stationed  there,  now  the 
long  line  of  tents  showed  that  this  force  was  largely  augmented, 
and  that  six  or  seven  thousand  men  were  collected  in  the 
camp.  It  was  evident  that  the  British  authorities  were  alive 
to  the  coming  danger,  and  that  they  would  not  be  surprised 
by  the  unprovoked  invasion  of  the  Sikhs. 

Sir  Henry  Hardinge  had  arrived  in  July  as  governor- 
general,  and  being  warned  by  the  Residents  at  Loodiana  and 
other  frontier  stations  of  the  probability  that  the  Sikh  army 
would  insist  upon  war,  and  overcome  any  opposition  on  the 
part  of  the  maharanee,  he  had  quietly  made  preparations  for 
the  event  by  moving  up  considerable  bodies  of  troops  to  the 
north-west.  It  had  indeed  for  some  time  been  evident,  that 
unless  Ghoolab  Singh  accepted  the  office  of  prime  minister 
troubles  must  come.  He  was  the  one  man  in  the  country 
whose  personal  power  and  influence  would  enable  him  to 
control  the  mutinous  army,  and  his  refusal  to  accept  the  post 
rendered  it  certain  that  the  struggle  would  come  sooner  or 
later. 

Ghoolab  possessed  talent  and  astuteness  equal  to  that  of  his 
brother  Dhyan,  and  was,  like  him,  convinced  that  the  power 
of  England  was  too  great -for  that  of  the  Sikhs;  he  was,  there- 
fore, strongly  against  war.  On  the  other  hand  his  position 
was  a  difficult  one.  Had  he  attempted  to  stem  the  tide  of 
popular  clamour  his  own  army  would  have  turned  against  him, 
and  he  might  have  lost  both  his  possessions  and  his  life.  He 


132  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

was  therefore  obliged  to  temporize,  and  believed  that  he  would 
gain  advantages  whichever  way  the  struggle  went. 

To  the  Sikhs,  then,  he  professed  a  complete  agreement  with 
their  views,  but  at  the  same  time  under  one  excuse  or  another 
he  remained  at  Jummoo,  replying  to  their  repeated  requests 
that  he  would  advance  with  his  army  to  Lahore,  by  saying  that 
he  was  perfectly  ready  to  do  so,  but  that  he  thought  it  would 
be  in  all  respects  better  to  keep  his  army  as  a  separate  force 
and  so  co-operate  with  the  main  body.  On  the  other  hand  he 
sent  secret  messages  to  the  British,  assuring  them  of  his  friend- 
ship, and  promising  them  that  whenever  he  saw  the  opportu- 
nity he  would  throw  the  whole  weight  of  his  influence  and 
power  into  the  scale  on  their  side. 

Nand  Chund  and  his  detachment  of  cavalry  did  not  enter 
Loodiana,  but  took  leave  of  Percy  when  they  came  within 
sight  of  the  place,  and  started  at  once  on  their  return. 

"I  shall  travel  by  another  road,"  he  said,  "and  if  we  should 
be  questioned  hereafter  we  can  strongly  deny  any  report  that 
we  have  paid  a  visit  to  Loodiana,  for  were  it  known  it  would 
excite  a  feeling  against  our  lord,  who  would  be  accused  of 
being  in  communication  with  the  English.  There  is,  it  is 
true,  no  cause  whatever  to  fear  another  attack  upon  the  fortress 
while  the  war  continues,  but  it  might  prejudice  him  afterwards, 
and  if  things  go  badly  with  the  Sikhs  some  fanatic  might 
endeavour  to  take  vengeance  upon  him." 

"  Give  my  love  to  my  uncle  and  aunt,  and  tell  them  I  hope 
to  see  them  again  before  long." 

Percy's  two  followers  closed  up  behind  him,  and  as  soon  as 
the  troops  had  started  he  rode  with  them  into  Loodiana. 

The  Resident  was  alighting  from  his  horse  at  the  door  of 
his  bungalow  when  Percy  rode  up. 

"Ah,  Groves,  is  it  you?"  he  said.  "I  was  wondering 
whether  I  should  see  you  soon.  I  heard  that  an  army  had 
marched  to  attack  your  uncle's  place,  and  a  few  days  ago  my 
agent  at  Lahore  wrote  me  there  were  rumours  that  they  had 


STARTLING   NEWS  133 

been  repulsed  with  very  heavy  loss,  which  I  was  glad  to  hear, 
not  only  for  your  sake,  but  because  a  reverse  of  that  sort  would 
not  raise  the  spirits  of  their  army.  How  did  it  all  end,  and 
what  are  you  here  for?  But  you  can  tell  me  that  while  we  are 
having  tiffen;  you  know  it  is  about  my  hour.  You  have  become 
a  regular  young  Sikh.  I  did  not  recognize  you  at  the  first 
glance  in  that  finery." 

"I  have  worn  it  ever  since  I  have  been  there,"  Percy  said. 
"I  did  not  like  it  at  first,  but  I  soon  got  accustomed  to  it,  and 
it  is  certainly  cooler  than  my  own  clothes.  But  there  is  such 
a  prejudice  against  Europeans  that  my  uncle  thought  that  I 
had  much  better  follow  his  example  and  dress  in  the  fashion 
of  the  country.  I  brought  a  couple  of  English  suits  down 
with  me  in  my  valise,  but  I  was  obliged  to  ride  down  in  this 
dress  in  order  to  escape  notice.  Shall  I  change  before  tiffen, 
sir?" 

"No,  you  look  very  well  as  you  are,  Groves.  Have  you 
come  far  this  morning?  " 

"Only  about  ten  miles.  I  came  down  with  an  escort  of 
fifty  men,  and  crossed  the  Sutlej  yesterday  evening.  They 
left  me  a  couple  of  miles  outside  the  town." 

"Well,  you  had  better  go  in  to  your  old  room  and  have  a 
wash  while  I  take  my  bath.  Tiffen  will  be  ready  in  a  quarter 
of  an  hour." 

Two  or  three  officers  were  present  at  tiffen,  and  these  had 
difficulty  at  first  in  crediting  Mr.  Fullarton's  assurance  that 
the  young  Sikh  to  whom  he  introduced  them  was  really  an 
English  lad.  At  tiffen  Percy  related  the  events  of  the  siege  of 
the  fortress  at  his  host's  request. 

"It  must  be  a  strong  place  by  your  description,"  Mr. 
Fullarton  said  when  Percy  concluded  his  narration,  "and 
would  puzzle  even  British  troops  to  carry  it  by  assault.  Still 
I  have  no  doubt  our  engineers  would  manage  somehow  to  get 
heavy  guns  on  to  the  hill  commanding  it,  and  once  there 
it  could  not  hold  out  long." 


134  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

"My  uncle  was  quite  aware  of  that,  sir;  but  the  Sikhs  are 
very  clumsy  with  their  cannon,  and  he  calculated  that  the 
troops  would  soon  be  tired  of  the  siege.  But  it  would  cer- 
tainly be  a  very  difficult  matter  to  get  heavy  guns  up  there. 
There  is  some  sort  of  road  round  behind  through  the  hills, 
but  I  believe  it  is  a  mere  track,  and  uncle  thought  it  hardly 
possible  at  any  rate  for  the  Sikhs  to  bring  heavy  artillery  along 
it.  The  only  other  road  is  that  commanded  by  the  guns  of 
the  fortress,  and  runs  but  a  little  more  than  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  away  from  it.  The  guns  could  not  be  taken  up  without 
very  heavy  loss." 

After  the  officers  had  left,  Mr.  Fullarton  asked,  "  And  how 
about  yourself,  Groves?  What  are  you  thinking  of  doing,  and 
what  can  I  do  for  you?  " 

"My  uncle  thought  I  might  be  of  use,  sir.  I  can  speak 
Punjaubi  well  enough  to  pass  as  a  native,  and  he  thought  that 
you  might  accept  my  services  as  a  volunteer,  and  might  find 
me  useful  in  obtaining  information,  communicating  with  any 
of  the  Sikh  nobles  who  might  be  friendly,  or  in  any  other  way. 
I  have  two  men  with  me,  both  of  whom  can  be  trusted  thor- 
oughly, either  as  messengers  or  to  go  into  the  Sikh  camp  if 
necessary  to  gather  information.  I  started  the  moment  the 
Sikhs  moved  away  from  before  the  fortress,  and  we  had  news 
that  they  were  summoned  to  join  the  main  army  at  Lahore  as 
the  maharanee  had  given  way  to  the  wishes  of  the  war-party. 
The  news  was  so  important  that  my  uncle  sent  me  off  at  once, 
thinking  that  probably  your  agent  at  Lahore  might  be  unable 
to  send  you  news,  as  anyone  known  to  be  in  communication 
with  you  would  probably  be  arrested  at  once  when  war  was 
finally  determined  on." 

"You  are  the  first  bearer  of  the  news,"  Mr.  Fullarton  said. 
"It  is  ten  days  since  I  had  a  message  from  Lahore.  It  was 
in  that  letter  my  agent  sent  me  the  news  that  the  first  assault 
on  the  fortress  had  failed.  He  said  then  that  the  war-party 
had  completely  gained  the  ascendency,  and  that  he  thought 


STARTLING   NEWS  135 

the  final  decision  would  shortly  be  taken.  He  warned  me 
that  he  might  be  unable  to  send  me  further  news  at  present  as 
he  was  in  very  bad  odour,  it  being  known  he  was  in  commu- 
nication with  me,  and  that  he  was  sure  to  be  watched  if  not 
imprisoned. 

"  Not  having  heard,  I  felt  no  doubt  whatever  that  war  had 
been  decided  upon  and  wrote  accordingly  to  the  authorities, 
but  I  have  had  no  absolute  certainty  until  now,  as  other  causes 
may  have  prevented  my  agent  from  writing.  Take  a  seat  out 
in  the  verandah  for  a  few  minutes.  I  must  send  off  a  de- 
spatch at  once  with  the  news,  and  also  inform  Brigadier 
Wheeler,  who  is  in  command  here,  that  the  reports  that  the 
Sikhs  have  determined  on  war  are  now  confirmed.  After  I 
have  sent  the  despatches  off  I  will  join  you  again  and  talk 
over  what  you  were  saying  about  volunteering." 


CHAPTER  VIII 


IN   THE    SERVICE 

PERCY  was  not  kept  waiting  long,  for  in  twenty  minutes 
Mr.  Fullarton  joined  him  in  the  verandah. 

"  Now  about  yourself,  Groves.  I  have  no  doubt  that  you 
will  be  able  to  make  yourself  very  useful,  and  I  at  once  accept 
your  services  as  a  volunteer  in  the  civil  service.  I  do  not 
know  yet  whether  I  myself  shall  accompany  the  troops  if  they 
march  from  here.  If  I  do  I  will  take  you  with  me,  if  not  I 
will  introduce  you  to  General  Wheeler,  and  transfer  your 
services  to  him.  There  is  a  great  dearth  of  men  who  speak 
Punjaubi,  and  I  am  quite  sure  he  will  be  very  glad  to  have 
someone  with  him  so  well  acquainted  with  the  language  as  you 
are.  I  expect  him  here  shortly;  he  is  sure  to  come  across  to 
talk  matters  over  with  me  as  soon  as  he  receives  my  note.  I 
will  introduce  you  to  him  then.  Before  he  comes  you  had 
better  change  and  get  into  English  dress.  He  is  a  soldier  of 
the  old  school,  and  might  regard  your  present  attire  as  a  sort 
of  masquerading,  and  receive  an  unpleasant  impression  of 
you." 

Half  an  hour  later  General  Wheeler  and  three  or  four  offi- 
cers of  his  staff  rode  up  to  the  door  and  had  a  long  interview 
with  the  Resident.  At  its  conclusion  a  servant  brought  a 
message  to  Percy  that  Mr.  Fullarton  desired  to  see  him.  He 
had  by  this  time  changed  his  clothes, 

136 


-  £*•" 
$& 


u 


IN   THE   SERVICE  137 

"This  is  the  young  gentleman  of  whom  I  have  been  speak- 
ing to  you,  general,"  the  Resident  said  as  Percy  entered. 
"  He  is  the  nephew  of  the  Colonel  Groves  who  has  been  many 
years  in  the  Sikh  service.  His  father  was  an  officer  in  our 
own  army.  He  speaks  Punjaubi  like  a  native.  He  has  vol- 
unteered, and  will,  I  am  sure,  be  very  useful  to  us.  I  came 
out  with  him  in  the  same  ship  from  England,  and  formed  a 
high  idea  of  his  intelligence.  It  is,  I  believe,  his  wish  to 
enter  the  service  of  the  Company  later  on.  He  is  not  with- 
out some  little  experience  in  war,  for  but  a  week  ago  he  took 
part  in  the  defence  of  his  uncle's  fortress  when  attacked  by 
fifteen  thousand  Sikhs,  whom  they  beat  off  handsomely.  I 
have  been  telling  General  Wheeler,  Groves,  that  you  might  be 
very  useful  in  obtaining  information  or  in  communications 
with  the  natives,  and  that  the  fact  that  there  might  be  some 
little  peril  in  the  work  would  not  be  any  obstacle  to  your 
undertaking  it.  I  said  that  I  was  going  to  keep  you  by  me  as 
a  sort  of  civilian  aide-de-camp,  but  the  general  has  been  good 
enough  to  say  that  he  will  attach  you  to  his  staff  nominally  as 
interpreter,  but  in  fact  as  an  extra  aide-de-camp:  and  as  my 
assistant  and  myself  both  speak  the  language  well,  while  the 
general  is  short  of  officers  who  know  it,  I  feel  that  you  will  be 
of  more  service  to  him  than  to  me.  But  I  consider  you  as 
lent  only,  and  I  shall  be  glad  at  any  time  if  General  Wheeler 
no  longer  requires  your  services  to  take  you  on  in  the  capacity 
of  an  extra  assistant." 

"  Can  you  ride  ?  "  General  Wheeler  asked.  "  But  I  suppose 
I  need  hardly  ask  that,  as  you  have  been  living  among  the 
Sikhs." 

"Yes,  I  can  ride,  sir,  in  the  Sikh  fashion  or  the  English." 
"Mr.  Fullarton  tells  me  that  you  could  pass  as  a  native." 
"In  anything  like  an  ordinary  conversation  I  could,  sir; 
and  as  I  have  worn  the  native  dress  for  the  last  ten  months  I 
am  perfectly  at  home  in  it." 

"Very  well,   then,  you  can  consider  yourself  as  from  the 


138  THROUGH   THE   SIKH  WAR 

present  time  attached  to  my  staff.  Major  Clissold,  v/ill  you 
see  after  him?  I  should  think  that  you,  as  adjutant-general 
of  the  division,  will  find  him  even  more  useful  than  I  should 
do  as  an  aide-de-camp." 

"You  can  leave  us  now,  Groves,"  Mr.  Fullarton  said,  "but 
wait  outside  and  Major  Clissold  will  speak  to  you  presently." 

Percy  bowed  and  withdrew.  The  conversation  still  contin- 
ued to  turn  upon  him. 

"  I  should  think  one  might  put  him  in  general  orders,  Clis- 
sold, either  as  an  extra  aide-de-camp  or  as  attached  to  your 
department.  I  don't  know  what  the  rules  of  the  service  are 
with  regard  to  the  uniform  of  volunteers  attached  to  the  army. 
It  is  so  seldom  done  now  that  I  really  do  not  know,  but  in  the 
old  days  they  were  dressed,  I  believe,  as  officers." 

"No,  that  won't  do,"  Mr.  Fullarton  laughed.  "I  am  going 
to  make  a  civilian  of  him.  If  he  does  well  in  the  campaign 
he  might  perhaps  get  gazetted  as  an  ensign,  but  it  would  be 
very  much  better  for  him  to  have  a  claim  on  the  civil  side. 
Therefore,  I  shall  take  upon  myself  to  appoint  him  as  my 
deputy-assistant.  I  shall  write  to  Sir  Henry  Hardinge  asking 
that  the  temporary  appointment  may  be  confirmed,  seeing 
the  urgent  necessity  for  more  officers  up  in  the  language  and 
with  a  knowledge  of  the  country.  So  we  may  consider  the 
appointment  made.  Now  I  lend  him  to  you,  and  you  can 
put  it  in  general  orders  that  the  temporary  services  of  Deputy- 
assistant  Groves  have  been  placed  by  me  at  your  disposal  as 
interpreter,  and  that  he  is  henceforth  attached  to  the  head- 
quarter staff  of  the  division.  That  will  give  him  an  established 
position,  and  he  can  wear  his  civilian  clothes,  a  white  helmet, 
and  so  on." 

"I  think  that  will  be  a  very  good  plan,"  the  general  said. 

"  He  has  two  servants  with  him.  They  are  Pathans,  both 
first-rate  fellows,  whom  he  will  employ  when  necessary  to 
obtain  information,.  I  would  suggest  that  they  be  put  on 
rations  as  a  matter  of  convenience  to  Groves,  and  they  could 


IN   THE   SERVICE  139 

be  entered  either  as  civilian  servants  or  guides.  It  is  no 
question  of  money,  for  although  the  lad's  uncle  has  a  reputa- 
tion for  moderation,  very  rare  among  the  adventurers  who 
served  Runjeet  Singh,  he  must  be  a  rich  man." 

"I  will  make  a  note  of  it,"  Major  Clissold  said,  and  the 
conversation  then  turned  to  other  matters. 

Half  an  hour  later  the  officers  came  out  and  rode  away. 
Mr.  Fullarton  said  as  they  did  so,  "  I  will  myself  ride  over 
with  Groves  later  on,"  and  he  then  came  into  the  verandah, 
where  Percy  was  waiting.  "I  think  I  have  done  a  good 
stroke  of  business  for  you,  Groves." 

"You  have  indeed,  sir.  I  am  awfully  obliged  to  you, 
although  I  would  rather  have  stayed  with  you." 

"And  I  should  have  been  glad  to  have  had  you,  but  it  is 
better  as  we  have  arranged  it.  You  will  have  much  greater 
opportunities  for  seeing  service  with  the  brigadier,  and  a 
report  in  your  favour  would  come  much  better  from  him  than 
it  would  from  me,  as  I  appointed  you.  It  is  probable  that  I 
shall  remain  at  my  post,  and  in  that  case  there  would  be  little 
for  you  to  do  here.  While  acting  as  an  interpreter  on  the  staff 
you  will  have  abundant  work,  making  bargains  for  the  quarter- 
master's department,  for  waggons  and  transport,  finding  out 
about  roads  and  fords  for  Major  Clissold,  and  in  general 
interpreting  work.  You  must  change  your  head-gear.  That 
pithtopee  you  have  got  is  really  better,  but  we  generally  wear 
either  the  helmet  or  a  cap  like  a  forage  cap,  with  a  pugaree 
wrapt  round  it,  and  the  ends  falling  down  behind  to  keep 
the  sun  off  the  back  of  the  neck  and  spine.  I  should  advise 
you  to  adopt  that,  for  there  is  no  getting  a  helmet  here. 
When  you  ride  about  always  take  one  or  both  of  your  mounted 
servants  behind  you.  They  are  soldierly-looking  fellows,  and 
it  will  give  you  weight  with  the  natives.  I  need  not  tell  you 
that  now  you  will  hardly  be  free  to  go  about  quite  as  you  like, 
and  that  even  when  there  is  nothing  for  you  to  do  you  will  be 
expected  to  be  at  hand  if  required.  Major  Clissold  is  a  capi- 


140  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

tal  fellow  to  serve  under.  He  may  work  you  hard,  for  there 
will  be  an  immense  deal  of  work  to  be  done,  but  he  is  always 
pleasant  and  agreeable  to  his  subordinates,  and  is  very  much 
liked  in  the  force.  I  have  some  writing  to  finish,  but  in  about 
an  hour  I  shall  be  ready  to  start  with  you,  so  you  may  as  well 
warn  your  two  fellows  to  be  ready.  I  have  a  forage  cap  that 
I  have  only  worn  once  or  twice,  for  it  is  too  small  for  me.  I 
will  tell  Ram  Singh  to  put  a  pugaree  on,  and  if  necessary  put 
some  folded  cotton  inside  the  lining  to  make  it  fit  you." 

An  hour  later  they  rode  into  the  head-quarter  camp. 

"I  have  brought  you  your  interpreter,  Clissold,"  Mr.  Fullar- 
ton  said  as  he  entered  that  officer's  tent,  followed  by  Percy, 
their  horses  being  held  by  the  latter's  men.  "  Where  are  you 
going  to  stow  him?  As  there  is  no  getting  tent  furniture  here, 
I  have  told  my  man  to  send  over  what  is  necessary;  but  as  I 
did  not  know  whether  Groves  would  have  a  tent  to  himself  or 
not  I  told  him  to  wait  till  I  returned  before  he  started." 

"  No,  I  have  put  him  in  a  tent  with  Hunt.  We  can't  afford 
a  tent  each  for  subalterns,  so  they  are  doubled  up  two  together. 
But  Hunt  happens  to  be  an  odd  man,  which  is  lucky. 
Orderly,"  he  called  out,  and  as  the  soldier  entered,  "tell  Mr. 
Hunt  I  shall  be  glad  if  he  will  step  here." 

A  minute  later  a  young  officer  entered.  "Hunt,  here  is 
the  young  gentleman  who,  as  I  told  you,  will  have  to  share 
your  tent.  He  is  a  volunteer  in  the  civil  service.  Mr.  Ful- 
larton  has  kindly  lent  him  to  us  for  a  time  as  interpreter, 
which  I  am  sure  we  want  badly  enough  on  the  staff,  for  none 
of  you  young  fellows  are  of  the  slightest  use  with  the  natives. 
He  is  the  son  of  an  officer  late  of  our  service  and  has  been 
for  the  last  six  months  with  his  uncle,  who  was  one  of  Runjeet 
Singh's  colonels,  and  still  holds  the  fortress  he  was  appointed 
to  some  time  ago,  although  ordered  by  the  Sikhs  to  leave.  I 
am  sure  you  will  get  on  well  together,  and  I  hope  that  you  will 
make  him  as  comfortable  as  you  can,  and  introduce  him  to 
the  other  aides.  He  will  mess  with  you  for  the  present." 


IN   THE    SERVICE  141 

The  young  officer  shook  hands  with  Percy.  "  If  you  will 
come  with  me  I  will  show  you  our  tent." 

"If  you  don't  mind,  Hunt,  I  will  come  with  you,"  Mr. 
Fullarton  said ;  "  then  I  can  see  what  is  wanted  in  the  way  of 
furniture." 

The  tent  was  a  square  one  with  double  canvas,  the  two  walls 
being  four  feet  apart,  thus  making  a  passage  round  it,  one  side 
being  utilized  as  a  bath-room  and  receptacle  for  luggage,  the 
other  being  used  by  the  servants  as  their  living  and  sleeping 
apartment.  There  was  a  carpet  spread  over  the  floor,  a  native 
camp-bed,  two  folding  chairs,  a  table,  and  a  portable  bath. 

"All  you  want,  as  far  as  I  can  see,"  Mr.  Fullarton  said,  "is 
another  charpoy  -and  a  couple  more  chairs." 

"That  is  all,"  Hunt  agreed;  "this  is  all  the  furniture  one 
is  allowed,  which  we  think  rather  hard.  Do  you  think  the 
Sikhs  are  going  to  cross  the  Sutlej,  sir?" 

"Of  course,  they  may  do  so,  but  the  general  impression  is 
that  it  will  not  be  in  force ;  they  may  begin  by  making  raids, 
but  probably  the  real  fighting  will  take  place  when  we  get 
across.  Well,  now,  I  shall  leave  you,  Groves;  I  think  you 
will  get  on  very  well,  and  I  daresay  we  shall  meet  pretty  nearly 
every  day." 

"Are  those  two  fellows  yours?"  Hunt  asked,  as,  going  out 
of  the  tent  with  Mr.  Fullarton,  he  saw  the  two  natives  sitting 
like  statues  on  their  horses  in  front  of  the  tent,  while  one  of 
them  held  the  bridle  of  Percy's  horse. 

"Yes,  they  are  my  two  servants;  they  are  two  of  my  uncle's 
soldiers.  Both  have  been  officers'  servants,  they  are  extremely 
useful  fellows,  and  I  can  trust  them  thoroughly.  One  is  a 
Pathan  from  the  hill  frontier  of  Afghanistan,  the  other  is  from 
Cashmere,  therefore  neither  of  them  have  any  special  leanings 
towards  the  Sikhs." 

"That  is  a  capital  horse  of  yours?" 

"Yes,  he  is  very  fast,  and  has  much  more  endurance  than 
the  horses  of  the  plains.  My  uncle  bred  him.  He  has  a 


142  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

European  sire,  and  his  dam  is  considered  as  having  some  of 
the  best  blood  in  the  Punjaub.  What  shall  Ltell  my  men  to 
do  with  the  horses?  " 

"  They  can  picket  yours  over  there ;  that  line  of  horses  all 
belong  to  the  staff.  Their  own  they  can  put  with  that  line 
behind,  those  are  the  horses  of  the  orderlies.  I  will  go  across 
with  you  and  see  about  it,  or  some  of  the  soldiers  will  be 
interfering." 

The  horses  were  soon  picketed,  and  the  men  brought  Percy's 
saddle  and  valises  to  his  tent.  By  night  he  felt  quite  at  home. 
The  aides-de-camp  were  pleasant  young  men,  and  having 
already  been  spoken  to  by  Major  Clissold,  received  the  new- 
comer cordially.  Percy  had  inquired  of  Hunt  as  to  the 
messing  arrangements.  "  I  am  well  supplied  with  money,"  he 
said,  "and  wish,  of  course,  to  pay  my  share  of  all  expenses." 

"That  can  easily  be  managed,"  Hunt  replied.  "The  way 
it  is  arranged  is  this.  There  were  five  of  us :  Long  and  myself 
are  the  general's  aides-de-camp;  Humphreys  and  Lascelles, 
who  are  deputy-assistant-quartermaster-generals;  and  Egerton, 
who  is  an  assistant-adjutant-general.  They  are  all  lieutenants. 
We  brought  up  with  us  a  certain  amount  of  mess  stores,  prin- 
cipally liquor,  which  are  all  common  property.  I  will  see 
to-morrow  what  stock  is  left,  and  you  can  hand  me  over  a 
sixth  of  the  value,  which  will  go  to  the  fund  for  general  ex- 
penses. However,  these  are  not  heavy,  for  being  under  can- 
vas we  draw  rations — meat  and  bread — and  I  buy  what  I  can 
get  in  the  way  of  vegetables,  game,  and  so  on,  from  the  coun- 
try people.  Of  course,  if  you  leave  us  before  our  store  of  liquor 
is  exhausted,  I  shall,  as  it  were,  buy  your  share  back  again." 

Percy  found  the  society  very  agreeable.  His  experience  of 
the  junior  officers'  mess  on  board  a  ship  had  prepared  him  for 
the  tone  of  light  chaff  and  fun  that  prevailed.  Although  by 
some  four  years  the  youngest  of  the  party,  the  fact  that  he  was 
acquainted  with  the  country  they  expected  shortly  to  invade 
gave  him  a  certain  weight  with  the  others,  none  of  whom  had 


IN  THE   SERVICE  143 

been  in  that  part  of  India  before.  He  was  asked  innumerable 
questions  as  to  the  Sikhs,  and  what  he  thought  of  their  righting 
powers;  and  had  to  recount  in  full  detail  the  story  of  the 
attempt  to  storm  the  fortress. 

"That  uncle  of  yours  must  be  an  uncommonly  plucky  fellow 
to  hold  on  there  in  the  face  of  the  whole  of  the  Sikhs,  and  he 
must  be  amazingly  liked  by  his  troops  for  them  to  stick  to  him 
against  their  own  countrymen." 

"That  is  not  so  wonderful,"  Percy  said,  "for  the  Sikhs  are 
constantly  fighting  against  each  other.  Most  of  his  men  have 
served  under  him  for  eight  or  ten  years.  The  rest  were  re- 
cruited in  his  district,  which  was  only  conquered  by  the  Sikhs 
in  Runjeet's  time,  so  they  are  still  considered  as  interlopers 
by  the  natives.  Still,  of  course,  there  is  always  the  fear  of 
treachery;  and  my  uncle  nearly  lost  his  life  while  the  attack 
was  going  on;  the  man  who  attempted  it  was  one  of  those  he 
trusted  most  thoroughly,  being  his  steward  and  the  head  of 
his  household." 

"You  did  not  tell  us  about  that,"  Hunt  said.  "How  was 
it?  "  and  Percy  had  to  tell  the  story. 

"  And  you  shot  him  ?  Well,  I  have  never  shot  a  man  yet, 
and  I  don't  know  how  I  should  feel.  Were  you  very  uncom- 
fortable afterwards?  " 

"Not  in  the  slightest.  .  He  was  going  to  kill  my  uncle, 
and  I  fired  and  he  went  down,  and  I  thought  nothing  more 
about  it  till  I  mentioned  it  to  my  uncle  after  it  was  all  over." 

"  I  suppose  you  are  a  good  shot?  " 

"I  am  a  fair  shot,"  Percy  said.  "I  have  practised  nearly 
every  day  since  I  left  England,  except  when  I  was  travelling 
up  country.  Mr.  Fullarton  advised  me  to  do  so  on  board 
ship,  and  my  uncle  kept  me  regularly  at  that  and  riding  and 
sword  exercise  every  day,  partly  because  he  said  these  things 
would  De  most  useful  to  me,  and  partly  because  the  Sikhs  look 
up  to  anyone  who  can  do  things  better  than  they  can." 

"  It  must  be  awfully  jolly  to  be  able  to  speak  the  language, 


144  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

Groves?"  Lieutenant  Egerton  said,  "and  I  hear  you  speak  it 
like  a  native.  You  must  have  a  wonderful  knack  of  picking 
up  languages  to  have  learnt  it  so  completely  in  six  months." 

"  It  was  not  exactly  in  six  months.  I  had  studied  Hindu- 
stani before  I  left  England;  and  luckily  Mr.  Fullarton  had  a 
Punjaubi  servant  with  him,  and  I  worked  with  him  regularly 
five  or  six  hours  a  day  throughout  the  voyage,  so  that  I  was 
able  to  get  on  pretty  fairly  with  the  language  by  the  time  I 
got  out  here." 

"I  wish  I  had  spent  my  voyage  as  well,"  Egerton  laughed, 
"instead  of  spending  it  spooning  with  a  young  woman  who 
was  on  her  way  out  to  be  married,  and  who  did  marry  the  man 
a  week  after  she  landed." 

"These  things  are  very  sad,  Egerton,"  Lieutenant  Lascelles 
laughed.  "I  suppose  you  were  heart-broken  for  a  time." 

"Not  quite.  I  will  do  her  justice  to  say  that  she  made  no 
secret  of  her  engagement,  and  never  flattered  me  with  the 
hope  that  she  intended  to  break  it.  At  the  same  time  she 
had  no  objection  to  flirt  with  me,  it  being  an  understood  thing 
on  both  sides  that  it  was  to  end  with  the  voyage.  It  was  very 
pleasant  while  it  lasted;  but  it  would  have  been  very  much 
wiser  to  have  done  as  Groves  did,  and  spent  the  hot  hours  of 
the  day  in  getting  up  a  language.  I  should  be  a  hundred  a 
year  better  off  if  I  had  passed  in  one  of  the  dialects,  and 
besides,  I  should  have  had  much  better  chance  of  getting  a 
^good  appointment." 

"  Ah,  well,  you  can  console  yourself,  Egerton,  by  thinking 
that  if  you  had  you  would  now  be  in  some  small  cantonment 
down  in  Bengal,  instead  of  having  a  chance  of  seeing  what- 
ever fun  may  be  going  on  here." 

"That  is  a  consolation  certainly,  Hunt;  but  I  don't  care  how 
soon  the  fun  begins,  for  I  own  that  I  am  getting  sick  of  bar- 
gaining for  bullocks  and  working  like  a  horse  eight  or  tern 
hours  a  day.  It  is  all  very  well  for  you  aides-de-camp,  whose 
work  consists  in  writing  a  few  letters  for  the  chief  and  can- 


IN    THE    SERVICE  145 

tering  across  with  some  message;  but  for  us  hard-worked 
quartermasters  it  is  no  holiday  here.  1  do  hope  most  heartily 
that  the  Sikhs  will  not  be  long  before  they  begin  their  raids, 
and  give  us  a  decent  excuse  for  fighting  them." 

"  How  strong  do  you  think  they  are  likely  to  turn  out, 
Groves?  They  tell  us  a  hundred  thousand." 

"I  should  say  a  good  deal  more  than  that,"  Percy  replied. 
"There  will  be  over  a  hundred  thousand  troops,  for  ;,11  who 
have  passed  through  the  ranks  will  be  certain  to  rt  join  them. 
Then  the  great  sirdars  can  put  almost  as  many  fignting  men 
into  the  field." 

"That  sounds  serious,  and  I  suppose  there  is  no  doubt  they 
will  fight  bravely." 

"lhat  they  are  sure  to  do,"  Percy  said.  "What  force  do 
you  think  we  shall  be  able  to  put  in  the  field?  " 

"Ihere  are  over  ten  thousand  men  at  Ferozepore,  with 
twenty-four  guns.  Here  we  have,  by  the  field  state  to-day, 
seven  thousand  two  hundred  and  thirty-five,  and  twelve  guns. 
At  Umballa  there  are  about  thirteen  thousand  men,  with 
thirty-two  guns.  You  see,  ever  since  Hardinge  came  out  he 
has  seen  this  thing  brewing,  and  has  been  quietly  preparing 
for  it.  When  he  landed  in  India  last  year  there  were  at  these 
three  stations  only  between  thirteen  and  fourteen  thousand 
men  and  forty-eight  guns,  and  in  the  last  eighteen  months  he 
has  increased  the  force  by  seventeen  thousand  men  and  twenty 
guns. 

"At  Meerut  there  are  about  ten  thousand  men  and  twenty- 
six  guns,  but  as  that  place  is  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles 
away,  we  can't  count  upon  any  assistance  from  there  at  first, 
if  the  Sikhs  should  take  it  into  their  head  to  cross  the  Sutlej. 
Of  course  if  we  invade  we  shall  wait  until  the  Meerut  force 
is  brought  up  before  we  advance.  Sir  Henry  arrived  at  Urn-  | 
balla  on  the  second,  and  was  to  leave  yesterday.  Ostensibly 
he  is  not  here  for  any  warlike  purpose  whatever,  but  is  occu- 
pied in  making  an  inspection  of  the  protected  district,  inter- 


146  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

viewing  the  chiefs,  and  ascertaining  what  their  feeling  is 
towards  us.  These  states  voluntarily  put  themselves  under 
our  protection  some  five-and-thirty  years  ago,  having  no 
desire  to  fall  under  the  sway  of  Lahore ;  and  they  have  greatly 
benefited,  for  Runjeet  Singh  would  assuredly  have  annexed 
the  whole  territory  between  the  Sutlej  and  the  Jumma,  if  he 
had  not  been  warned  that  if  he  attacked  these  petty  princes 
he  would  bring  us  into  the  field  against  him.  It  has  always 
been  a  sore  point  with  the  Sikhs  beyond  the  Sutlej  that  we 
prevented  them  from  obtaining  what  they  considered  their 
natural  boundaries.  The  protected  states  are  indeed  to  a 
great  extent  Sikh,  and  even  now,  although  they  owe  the  con- 
tinuance of  their  existence  as  separate  states  to  our  protection, 
and  the  chiefs  are  all  with  us,  the  sympathies  of  the  great 
body  of  the  people  are  entirely  with  the  Sikhs  across  the 
Sutlej. 

"Runjeet  Singh  was  wise  enough  to  know  that  he  would 
have  risked  losing  all  he  had  were  he  to  try  to  wrest  them  from 
us.  Had  he  thought  himself  strong  enough  he  would  have 
risked  a  war  for  it,  for  the  country  south  of  the  Sutlej  is  far 
more  fertile  than  it  is  to  the  north,  and  it  would  largely  in- 
crease the  revenues  of  the  Punjaub  did  it  form  part  of  it. 
This  is  the  real  cause  of  their  hostility  to  us,  and  of  their 
present  threatening  attitude.  Sir  Henry  is  going,  as  I  said, 
among  the  chiefs  here.  Some  of  these  are  really  friendly, 
others  only  pretend  to  be  so.  But  there  is  one  thing  certain, 
if  any  misfortune  happened  to  our  arms  the  whole  country 
would  be  up  against  us;  and  in  any  case  we  shall  have  to  take 
every  possible  precaution  to  guard  our  depots  and  communi- 
cations, for  directly  fighting  begins  it  would  be  unsafe  for 
small  parties  to  travel  about  the  country." 

Percy's  stay  in  camp  was  of  very  short  duration,  for  on  the 
following  evening  Major  Clissold  sent  for  him. 

"The  general  has  just  received  a  despatch  from  head- 
quarters, Groves;  the  news  from  the  north  is  to  the  effect  that 


IN  THE   SERVICE  147 


.     -/^ 


the  Sikhs  are  making  great  preparations  there,  and  Major 
Broadfoot,  the  chief  political  agent  at  head-quarters,  requests 
that  you  will  at  once  proceed  there  to  join  him,  as  he  wishes 
to  question  you  as  to  your  own  personal  observations  of  the 
state  of  feeling  as  you  came  down.  I  think  it  probable  he 
will  keep  you  with  him  for  the  present;  and  as  you  may  have 
more  important  work  to  do  there  than  buying  bullocks  and 
so  on,  I  hope  for  your  sake  he  will  do  so,  though  I  shall  be 
sorry  to  lose  you,  for  I  have  already  found  by  your  work  to- 
day that  you  would  be  a  very  valuable  assistant.  Still  there 
is  nothing  like  being  at  head-quarters  and  having  the  eye  of 
the  chief  of  your  department  upon  you.  You  had  better  start 
this  evening  late." 

"Very  well,  sir,  I  will  be  off  in  half  an  hour.  I  suppose  I 
can  ride  round  and  say  good-bye  to  Mr.  Fullarton." 

"Certainly.  There  is  no  absolute  occasion  to  start  until 
morning,  but  it  is  always  well  to  show  zeal,  and  it  will  no 
doubt  please  Broadfoot  if  you  arrive  there  by  daybreak.  You 
needn't  start  till  two  o'clock;  it  is  only  a  three  hours'  ride. 
The  head-quarter  camp  is  close  to  Basseean." 

"  I  am  sorry  you  are  going,"  Hunt  said  when  Percy  returned 
to  his  tent  and  told  him  the  news,  "  and  I  hope  you  will  be 
back  again  in  a  day  or  two.  If  not,  it  will  save  me  the  trouble 
of  taking  stock  of  our  liquors,  which  I  was  going  to  do  to-mor- 
row morning.  We  shall  be  glad  at  any  rate  to  have  had  you 
as  our  guest  for  a  day,  and  shall  all  be  sorry  at  your  leaving." 

Percy  at  once  rode  over  to  the  Residency. 

"You  are  in  luck,  Groves,"  Mr.  Fullarton  said  when  he  told 
him  of  the  order  he  had  received.  "There  is  nothing  like 
getting  to  head-quarters;  it  is  there  that  honours  and  rewards 
fall  thickest;  and  if  Broadfoot  keeps  you  with  him  you  may 
be  sure  that  any  recommendation  he  makes  in  your  favour  will 
be  attended  to.  I  have  heard  this  afternoon  that  the  Sikhs 
are  certainly  marching  down  towards  Ferozepore,  and  are 
within  a  few  miles  of  the  river.  Of  course  they  may  not  cross 


•^ 

148  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 


Once  or  twice  before  they  have  come  down,  but  without  cross- 
ing. Still,  if  they  are  in  earnest  there  is  no  doubt  it  means 
serious  fighting,  for  the  force  at  Ferozepore  is  quite  isolated 
and  will  at  once  be  cut  off  if  the  Sikhs  cross  near  the  town, 
and  there  will  be  no  chance  of  relieving  it  until  we  get  together 
a  force  sufficient  to  give  battle.  Sit  down  a  moment  and  I 
will  write  a  letter  of  introduction  for  you  to  Broadfoot;  it  will 
put  you  on  a  pleasanter  footing  with  him." 

The  next  morning  before  sunrise  Percy  with  his  two  fol- 
lowers rode  into  the  head-quarters  camp.  He  had  at  Mr. 
Fullarton's  recommendation  bought  a  pony,  or  "tat"  as  it  is 
called,  to  carry  his  valises  and  his  dress  as  a  young  Sikh  sirdar. 

"I  should  stick  to  that,  Groves;  it  may  be  of  use  to  you. 
There  is  no  saying  what  work  Broadfoot  may  give  you." 

Percy  was,  on  his  arrival,  directed  to  the  tent  of  the  political 
agent.  When  the  orderly  took  in  his  name  he  was  at  once 
called  in.  "I  did  not  expect  you  so  soon,  Mr.  Groves," 
Major  Broadfoot  said  looking  up;  "nor  did  I  expect,"  he 
added  smiling,  "to  see  quite  so  young  a  man." 

"I  daresay  not,  sir,"  Percy  replied.  "This  is  a  letter  Mr. 
Fullarton  has  given  me  for  you." 

"Sit  down  while  I  read  it,"  the  major  said  as  he  opened  it. 
He  read  it  through.  "Mr.  Fullarton  speaks  of  you  in 
extremely  high  terms,  Groves,  and  as  I  know  him  well  I  am 
sure  he  would  not  praise  unduly.  Now  tell  me  what  is  the 
opinion  of  your  uncle  and  the  people  about  him  as  to  the  state 
of  affairs.  Does  he  think  that  the  Sikhs  will  be  mad  enough 
to  cross  the  Sutlej  ?  " 

"He  has  no  doubt  whatever  about  it,  sir;  he  is  convinced 
that  the  troops  have  for  a  long  time  made  up  their  minds  to 
conquer  the  protected  states,  and  as  they  are  completely 
masters  of  the  situation  in  Lahore  there  is  nothing  to  prevent 
them  doing  so.  Such  was  also  the  opinion  of  all  his  native 
officers,  and  although  we  did  not  have  much  communication 
with  the  people  on  the  way  down,  all  whom  we  did  speak  to 
seemed  to  think  that  war  was  certain." 


IN   THE   SERVICE  149 

"The  news  we  received  from  Lahore  has  always  been  the 
other  way,"  Major  Broadfoot  said.  "I  have  received  a  mes- 
sage this  morning  to  the  same  effect,  but  Captain  Nicholson 
reported  yesterday  from  Ferozepore  that  a  considerable  Sikh 
force  had  arrived  within  three  miles  of  the  river.  Orders 
have  been  sent  for  a  general  forward  movement  of  the  troops. 
Sir  Henry  is  going  to  ride  over  to  Loodiana  this  morning  to 
inspect  the  force  there." 

"  I  have  two  followers,  sir,  who  can  be  trusted  to  obtain  any 
news  you  may  desire  to  get.  If  you  like,  one  of  them  will 
cross  the  river  and  make  his  way  to  the  Sikh  force  opposite 
Ferozepore  and  find  out  its  strength  and  whether  there  is  any 
intention  of  crossing;  or  if  you  prefer  it,  I  will  go  myself.  I 
have  always  been  accustomed  to  wear  the  Sikh  dress  since  I 
came  out,  and  could,  I  think,  pass  without  suspicion." 

"  It  is  most  important  that  we  should  obtain  some  definite 
news,"  Major  Broadfoot  said,  "and  I  am  much  obliged  to  you 
for  your  offer,  but  I  do  not  think  I  can  entertain  it.  It  is  too 
great  a  risk  for  you  to  run  to  go  yourself,  and  the  importance 
of  the  question  is  so  great  I  should  not  dare  to  forward  infor- 
mation, which  would  perhaps  involve  the  movements  of  the 
whole  army,  merely  upon  the  report  of  a  native,  however  trust- 
worthy he  may  be." 

"I  do  not  believe  there  is  any  danger  whatever  in  my  going, 
sir.  I  might  take  my  two  men  with  me,  and  should  disguise 
myself  in  a  dress  similar  to  theirs.  My  own,  which  is  that  of 
a  young  sirdar,  might  so  far  attract  attention  that  I  might  be 
questioned,  while  three  of  us  in  ordinary  soldiers'  dress  could 
move  about  without  being  noticed  in  any  way.  That  is  just 
the  sort  of  work  that  I  came  here  to  do,  and  my  uncle  thought 
that  as  a  boy  I  could  pass  unquestioned  where  a  man  could 
not  do  so.  One  of  my  men  is  five-  or  six-and-thirty,  so  I 
could  pass  well  enough  as  his  son  if  any  questions  were  asked, 
which  I  don't  think  would  be  the  case." 

"  Well,  Groves,  if  you  are  ready  to  go  I  do  not  think  myself 


THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

justified  in  refusing  your  offer,  as  it  is  of  such  extreme  impor- 
tance to  find  out  the  intentions  of  the  Sikhs.  When  will  you 
start?  " 

"I  would  give  the  horses  an  hour's  rest,  sir,  and  then  I  will 
be  off,  if  I  can  get  a  disguise  by  that  time." 

"  That  I  can  manage  for  you.  I  have  numbers  of  natives  in 
my  pay,  and  can  get  what  you  require,  a  native  dress  with 
shield,  tulwar,  and  matchlock,  in  a  quarter  of  an  hour.  Fer- 
ozepore  is  twenty  miles  from  here,  and  the  Sikh  force  some 
four  miles  farther;  but,  of  course,  you  won't  be  able  to  cross 
the  river  there,  and  must  do  it  ten  or  twelve  miles  higher  up 
and  then  ride  round.  Are  you  well  mounted?  " 

"Very  well  mounted,  sir." 

"Then  I  will  get  you  a  strong  native  'tat.'  Your  being 
mounted  on  a  good  horse  would  attract  attention.  Here,"  he 
went  on,  pointing  to  a  map,  "  is  a  point  where  the  river  is 
almost  if  not  quite  fordable  for  cavalry;  at  any  rate  you  will 
not  have  to  swim  your  horses  far.  I  should  advise  you  to 
make  for  that.  It  is  as  you  see  about  ten  miles  above  Feroze- 
pore.  It  is  not  at  all  likely  to  be  guarded;  and  should  it  be 
so,  you  could  of  course  give  out  that  you  are  natives  of  one  of 
the  protected  states,  say  of  Putiala,  making  your  way  to  join 
the  Sikh  army  that  you  hear  is  going  to  free  you  from  the 
dominion  of  the  English.  As  you  have  at  present  no  tent  of 
your  own,  you  had  better  come  across  here  in  half  an  hour  to 
make  your  change  of  clothes.  I  am  myself  going  over  to  Sir 
Henry's,  and  may  be  detained  there  some  time,  but  I  will 
tell  my  servants  to  get  breakfast  ready  for  you.  We  must  not 
send  you  off  fasting." 

Three  hours  later  Percy  and  his  two  followers  arrived  at  the 
bank  of  the  Sutlej.  They  had  been  directed  to  the  ford  by 
a  peasant  in  a  village  near,  and  crossed  without  difficulty, 
being  only  obliged  to  swim  their  horses  for  twenty  or  thirty 
yards  in  the  middle  of  the  stream.  When  they  reached  the 
opposite  bank  they  rode  up  to  a  small  party  of  armed  Sikhs 


IN   THE    SERVICE  151 

who  were  watching  them.  Percy  had  asked  Bhop  Lai  to  act 
as  spokesman. 

"  We  hear  that  the  army  is  going  to  cToss  the  river  and  to 
sweep  the  English  away,"  he  said,  "and  we  have  come  over 
to  join  them.  Our  rajah  is  all  in  favour  of  the  Feringhees, 
but  most  of  us  are  the  other  way,  and  we  were  not  going  to 
stop  quietly  at  home  without  taking  a  share  in  the  good  work, 
so  my  brother  and  son  have  come  off  with  me  without  waiting 
to  ask  for  leave.  There  are  thousands  of  others  who  will  do 
the  same  as  soon  as  they  are  sure  that  the  army  is  really  in 
the  field;  but  there  has  been  so  much  talk  about  it  for  the 
last  two  years  without  anything  coming  of  it,  that  they  are 
waiting  to  see  if  it  is  true  this  time." 

"It  is  quite  true,"  one  of  the  men  replied.  "There  are 
ten  thousand  men  now  opposite  Ferozepore,  and  the  rest  are 
on  their  way  down  from  Lahore.  There  will  be  fifty  thou- 
sand of  them  at  least,  with,  they  say,  over  a  hundred  and  fifty 
guns.  What  can  the  English  do  against  them?  They  have 
not  ten  thousand  men  they  can  put  in  the  field,  and  these  are 
scattered  over  the  country,  and  will  be  crushed  before  they 
can  assemble." 

"That  they  assuredly  will,"  Bhop  Lai  agreed  confidently. 
"  Fifty  thousand  men  could  sweep  away  every  white  soldier 
this  side  of  the  Jumna,  and  there  will  be  nothing  to  prevent 
them  marching  on  to  Delhi  if  they  choose." 

"We  shall  see  about  that,"  the  man  replied.  "Fifty  thou- 
sand is  only  a  beginning,  and  there  will  be  another  fifty  after 
them  in  a  very  short  time;  and  I  for  one  don't  see  why  we 
should  not  drive  the  Feringhees  altogether  out  of  India." 

"That  is  the  way  to  talk,"  Bhop  Lai  said  cordially.  "We 
shall  always  have  trouble  till  the  last  of  them  have  gone,  and 
who  so  fit  as  the  Sikhs  to  be  masters  in  their  place !  How  far 
is  it  to  this  camp  you  speak  of?  " 

"About  twelve  miles.  Ride  two  miles  farther  and  you  will 
come  upon  a  broad  road.  Turn  to  the  left,  and  it  will  bring 
you  there." 


152 


THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 


"What  are  you  doing  here?  " 

"We  have  been  sent  here  to  see  that  none  of  the  English 
horsemen  cross  the  river  to  gather  news.  There  are  two  hun- 
dred of  our  cavalry  a  quarter  of  a  mile  behind,  and  if  we  saw 
any  of  the  Feringhee  cavalry  coming  they  would  be  here  to 
defend  the  ford  before  they  could  cross." 

With  a  nod  of  farewell  Bhop  Lai  and  his  two  companions 
rode  on.  They  passed  within  a  couple  of  hundred  yards  of 
the  body  of  Sikh  horsemen,  encamped  in  a  grove.  But  there 
was  no  sign  of  movement  among  them,  a  few  figures  sat  talk- 
ing together  here  and  there,  the  rest  had  evidently  lain  down 
to  sleep  the  hours  away  in  the  shade. 


CHAPTER   IX 

MOODKEE   AND    FEROZESHAH 

TWO  hours  after  crossing  the  river,  Percy  with  his  two  com- 
panions saw  on  the  plain  the  camp  of  the  Sikhs.  As  they 
did  not  wish  to  enter  until  evening,  they  turned  off  from  the 
road  and  rode  into  a  clump  of  thick  bush  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
away,  and  there  waited  until  sunset.  Then  they  mounted 
again  and  rode  boldly  into  camp.  With  the  exception  of  the 
tents  of  a  few  of  the  military  chiefs  and  sirdars,  the  troops 
were  not  under  canvas,  although  many  had  erected  shelters  of 
bushes  or  blankets.  Here  and  there  some  attempt  at  regular- 
ity marked  the  places  where  regiments  of  the  regular  troops 
had  established  themselves.  Here  the  horses  were  picketed 
in  line,  but  among  the  followers  of  the  sirdars  every  man  had 
fastened  up  his  horse  just  where  it  pleased  him,  without  the 
smallest  attempt  at  order. 

The  new-comers  chose  a  vacant  spot  at  the  edge  of  the 
encampment,  picketing  their  three  horses  together,  and 
raised  in  front  of  them  a  rough  tent  consisting  of  a  couple  of 
blankets  supported  by  some  sticks  they  had  cut  in  the  bush. 
Here  they  lighted  a  fire  and  cooked  a  meal.  One  or  two  of 
the  Sikhs  strolled  across  to  question  them,  and  Bhop  Lai  and 
his  comrades  repeated  the  story  that  had  been  told  at  the  ford, 
which  was  accepted  as  perfectly  satisfactory.  They  in  turn 
asked  a  fe\H  questions  as  to  the  various  sirdars  present,  and  as 

153 


154  THROUGH    THE    SIKH    WAR 

to  which  body  they  had  better  attach  themselves.  When  they 
had  finished  their  meal  they  sauntered  off  into  the  camp. 

There  was  but  one  topic  of  conversation  among  the  troops. 
They  were  to  cross  the  Sutlej,  if  not  on  the  next  day,  on  the 
one  following.  A  portion  of  the  army  was  to  besiege  Feroze- 
pore,  while  the  rest  marched  forward  to  sweep  away  the  Brit- 
ish forces  at  Loodiana  and  Umballa.  It  was  evident  from 
their  conversation  that  they  greatly  under-estimated  the  Brit- 
ish strength  at  each  of  these  cantonments,  and  that  the  gradual 
arrival  of  reinforcements  had  passed  entirely  unnoticed  by  the 
Sikhs  on  the  northern  side  of  the  Sutlej.  They  anticipated 
no  difficulty  whatever  in  destroying  the  British  forces  at  the 
first  onset.  Their  statement  as  to  the  number  of  troops  who 
would  take  the  field  at  once,  agreed  with  those  of  the  soldiers 
at  the  ford,  and  they  deemed  that  this  fifty  thousand  men 
would  amply  suffice  to  conquer  the  whole  country  north  of  the 
Jumna,  and  that  with  their  full  fighting  power  they  should  be 
able  to  overrun  the  whole  of  India. 

"We  have  heard  all  that  we  want,"  Percy  said  to  the  men 
after  they  had  strolled  for  an  hour  in  the  Sikh  camp.  "We 
had  best  move  quietly  off  at  once  before  the  camp  begins  to 
get  quiet.  Our  fire  will  have  burnt  out  by  this  time,  and 
even  if  they  should  notice  us  moving,  the  men  near  will  sup- 
pose that  we  are  merely  shifting  our  quarters,  and  are  moving 
over  to  the  sirdar  we  have  decided  to  follow." 

They  had  some  difficulty  in  finding  their  tent  again  in  the 
darkness,  and  as  soon  as  they  did  so  the  blankets  were  taken 
down,  rolled  up,  and  strapped  behind  the  saddles.  The 
picket  pegs  were  pulled  up,  and  leading  their  horses  they 
moved  off,  skirting  for  a  time  the  line  of  the  camp,  but  grad- 
ually increasing  their  distance  until  two  hundred  yards  away 
from  it,  when  they  thought  it  quite  safe  to  mount  and  ride  off 
in  the  darkness.  They  had  some  trouble  in  striking  the  road 
again;  when  they  did  so  they  halted  for  a  consultation.  It 
was  decided  to  turn  off  and  encamp  again  for  three  or  four 


MOODKEE  AND   FEROZESHAH  155 

hours  in  order  to  rest  the  horses,  and  then  to  make  for  the 
river  bank  and  wait  there  until  the  first  light  of  morning 
showed  them  a  point  where  they  could  swim  their  horses 
across,  for  the  presence  of  the  guard  at  the  ford  rendered  it 
impossible  for  them  to  use  that  passage  again.  This  plan 
was  carried  out,  and  they  arrived  at  the  bank,  some  three  or 
four  miles  below  the  ford,  just  as  daylight  began  to  appear. 
The  bed  of  the  river  was  wide,  and  the  stream,  broken  by 
sand-banks,  flowed  in  several  channels. 

"There  will  be  no  great  difficulty  in  crossing  anywhere 
here,"  Percy  said;  "the  channels  are  nowhere  very  wide,  and 
even  if  we  are  swept  down  the  stream  it  will  not  matter,  as  we 
can  rest  after  each  swim.  We  had  better  start  at  once. 
Should  there  be  any  Sikhs  about  they  will  hardly  make  us  out 
till  it  gets  lighter,  and  we  may  hope  to  be  pretty  well  beyond 
musket-shot  before  they  can  come  down  to  the  water's  edge. 
They  will  not  be  likely  to  try  to  follow  us  across,  and  if  they 
do  so,  with  the  start  of  a  quarter  of  an  hour  we  ought  to  be  able 
to  throw  them  off  our  track." 

They  were  not  disturbed  while  making  the  passage.  This 
was,  however,  more  difficult  than  Percy  had  anticipated,  for 
the  current  in  two  of  the  channels  was  very  strong  and  swept 
them  down  some  distance  before  they  could  obtain  a  footing 
on  the  sand-bank.  Apparently  no  watch  whatever  was  kept  by 
the  Sikhs  excepting  at  the  fords,  and  nothing  was  seen  of  the 
enemy.  On  reaching  the  opposite  bank  they  gave  the  horses 
a  short  rest  to  recover  their  breath,  and  then  rode  on  to 
Basseean. 

"What !  are  you  back  already?  "  Major  Broadfoot  said  when 
Percy  was  shown  into  his  tent.  "  I  did  not  expect  you  back 
until  to-morrow  at  the  earliest.  Have  you  really  been  in  the 
Sikh  camp?" 

"Yes,  sir;  we  were  there  about  three  hours,  which  was  quite 
sufficient  to  learn  everything  that  we  required ;  "  and  he  then 
gave  the  officer  the  news  that  they  had  gathered. 


JN^ 

166  THROUGH    THE   SIKH   WAR 

"This  is  most  important,"  Major  Broadfoot  said.  "Sir 
Henry  returned  half  an  hour  ago  from  Loodiana.  I  will  take 
you  with  me  to  his  tent.  He  may  want  to  ask  you  further 
questions." 

The  commander-in-chief  after  hearing  Percy's  report  asked 
him  several  questions  in  order  to  find  out  whether  the  state- 
ments had  been  made  by  one  native  only;  but  Percy  replied 
that  they  had  spoken  to  a  score  of  soldiers,  and  that  all  were 
in  perfect  agreement  as  to  the  force  that  would  cross  the  river, 
and  the  division  that  would  be  made  of  the  forces  and  their 
object  in  so  doing. 

"I  thank  you,  sir,"  Sir  Henry  said  when  he  had  finished. 
"Your  information  is  most  important,  and  you  have  carried 
out  your  mission  with  great  ability  and  intelligence.  Major 
Broadfoot  will  take  notice  and  bring  it  to  my  attention  later 
on." 

Half  an  hour  later  despatches  were  sent  off  to  the  commander- 
in-chief  at  Umballa,  ordering  him  to  move  forward  at  once 
with  his  whole  force;  and  to  Loodiana,  ordering  General 
Wheeler  to  carry  out  the  measures  that  had  been  agreed  on 
between  him  and  the  governor-general  on  the  preceding  day, 
namely,  to  abandon  the  cantonments,  to  place  all  stores  in  the 
fort,  to  move  there  all  the  sick  and  others  unfit  to  take  the 
field,  with  a  force  sufficient  to  hold  the  place  for  a  time 
against  any  attack  that  might  be  made  upon  it,  and  to  march 
with  his  main  body  to  Basseean  so  as  to  protect  the  vast 
amount  of  stores  accumulated  there,  from  any  sudden  dash  by 
the  enemy.  In  the  evening  a  messenger  came  in  from  Feroze- 
pore,  saying  that  a  large  body  of  Sikhs  had  during  the  day 
crossed  the  river. 

The  next  morning,  the  i3th  of  December,  the  governor- 
general  issued  a  proclamation  to  the  chiefs  and  people  of  the 
protected  states,  pointing  out  that  since  1809  the  British  gov- 
ernment had  scrupulously  fulfilled  the  terms  made  with  Runjeet 
Singh,  and  that  notwithstanding  the  disorganized  state  of  the 


THE    COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF    THANKS    PERCY    FOR    HIS    REPORT. 


MOODKEE   AND   FEROZESHAH  157 

Lahore  government  during  the  last  two  years,  and  several  most 
unfriendly  proceedings  on  the  part  of  the  durbar,  the  governor- 
general  had  continued  to  evince  his  desire  to  maintain  the 
relations  of  amity  and  concord  which  had  so  long  existed 
between  the  two  states. 

The  attitude  of  the  Sikhs,  however,  had  continued  to  be 
more  and  more  unfriendly,  and  the  army  had  now,  without 
a  shadow  of  provocation,  invaded  British  territory.  The 
governor-general  therefore  declared  the  possessions  of  Maha- 
rajah Dhuleep  Singh,  on  the  left  or  British  bank  of  the  Sutlej, 
confiscated  and  annexed  to  the  British  territory.  The  ranks 
of  all  sirdars,  zemindars,  and  tenants  in  the  said  possessions 
who  should  evince  their  fidelity  to  the  British  government 
should  be  respected.  The  governor-general  called  upon  all 
chiefs  and  sirdars  to  co-operate  cordially  with  the  British 
government.  Those  who  did  so  would  find  their  interest  pro- 
moted thereby,  while  those  who  took  the  opposite  course  would 
be  considered  as  enemies  and  treated  accordingly.  The 
inhabitants  of  all  the  territories  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Sutlej 
were  requested  to  abide  peacefully  in  their  respective  villages, 
and  all  parties  of  men  found  in  arms  would  be  treated  as 
disturbers  of  the  public  peace. 

Fortunately  the  Sikhs  after  crossing  on  the  i2th,  instead  of 
marching  at  once  upon  Basseean,  halted  until  their  heavy  guns 
were  taken  across  on  the  i6th.  On  the  afternoon  of  the  i4th 
General  Wheeler,  who  had  marched  at  daybreak,  arrived  in 
front  of  Basseean:  and  on  the  i6th  General  Gough,  the  com- 
mander-in-chief,  arrived  there  with  the  force  from  Umballa. 
Had  the  Sikhs  pushed  forward  at  once  after  crossing,  Basseean 
with  its  great  stores  of  provisions  must  have  fallen  into  their 
hands,  and  a  week  or  ten  days  must  have  elapsed  before 
arrangements  for  provisioning  the  Umballa  force  could  have 
been  made.  In  that  case  the  whole  Sikh  army  would  have 
been  able  to  concentrate  its  efforts  upon  the  capture  of  Feroze- 
pore,  which,  in  the  absence  of  any  fortifications  capable  of 


158  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

withstanding  powerful  artillery,  could  scarcely  have  been 
defended  successfully. 

Percy  had  been  kept  actively  employed  during  the  three 
days  that  intervened  between  his  return  to  Basseean  and  the 
arrival  of  the  column  from  Umballa,  in  the  work  of  carrying 
copies  of  the  general's  proclamation  over  the  country,  and 
delivering  them  to  the  head  men  of  the  villages.  He  acted 
as  interpreter  to  the  officers  who,  attended  by  small  escorts  of 
cavalry,  performed  this  work,  and  was  on  horseback  from  day- 
light to  dark  each  day.  After  the  arrival  of  General  Wheeler's 
division  he  spent  his  evenings  with  his  acquaintances  there. 
The  troops  were  all  in  high  spirits  because  the  long  uncertainty 
was  at  an  end,  and  that  at  last  they  were  to  meet  the  men  who 
had  so  insolently  been  threatening  an  invasion.  The  fact  that 
the  odds  would  be  enormously  against  them  was  considered  a 
matter  of  no  importance  whatever,  for  the  British  troops  had 
so  long  been  accustomed  to  victory  in  India  that  the  idea  of 
a  reverse  was  not  entertained  for  a  moment  among  the  soldiers, 
although  among  the  officers,  who  were  aware  of  the  bravery 
and  fighting  power  of  the  Sikhs,  the  prospect  was  regarded 
with  a  good  deal  of  anxiety. 

All  the  accounts  received  bore  out  the  correctness  of  the 
information  that  Percy  had  obtained.  Twenty-five  thousand 
Sikhs,  all  regular  soldiers,  had  taken  possession  of  the  wells 
round  the  village  of  Ferozeshah,  half-way  between  Basseean 
and  Ferozepore,  and  entirely  cut  the  communication  between 
the  two  places;  for  owing  to  scarcity  of  water  no  other  road 
could  be  used  for  the  advance  of  an  army  except  that  passing 
through  Ferozeshah.  The  Sikhs  were  well  aware  of  this  fact, 
and  on  their  arrival  they  had  at  once  begun  to  throw  up  strong 
intrenchments.  Another  Sikh  army  of  twenty-three  thousand, 
and  sixty-seven  guns,  under  Tej  Singh,  remained  watching  the 
British  force  at  Ferozepore. 

The  British  force  at  Basseean  consisted  of  three  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  fifty  Europeans  and  eight  thousand  natives, 


•>*"  Vi 

MOODKEE   AND    FEROZESHAH  159 

with  forty- two  guns,  and  on  the  morning  of  the  i8th  of  De- 
cember marched  for  Ferozepore.  They  reached  their  camp- 
ing ground  round  the  village  of  Moodkee  at  one  o'clock  in 
the  day,  and  as  soon  as  arms  were  piled  began  to  cook  their 
dinner.  A  few  Sikh  horsemen  had  retired  from  the  village 
on  their  approach,  and  some  scouts  were  sent  out  to  ascertain 
if  there  was  any  considerable  body  of  the  enemy  near  at  hand; 
these  returned  in  a  short  time,  saying  that  a  large  force  had 
taken  up  a  position  three  miles  away.  There  were,  indeed, 
twelve  thousand  of  them,  principally  cavalry,  with  twenty  guns. 
From  friends  at  Basseean  they  had  learnt  that  an  advance  was 
to  be  made  by  the  British,  and  thinking  that  it  would  be  but 
an  advance-guard,  Lai  Singh  had  with  this  body  of  troops  left 
the  camp  at  Ferozeshah  early  in  the  morning  and  had  taken 
up  his  position  before  the  arrival  of  the  British  army  at  Mood- 
kee. As  soon  as  the  news  was  received  the  troops  got  under 
arms  and  moved  forward,  the  artillery  and  cavalry  leading  the 
way  and  the  infantry  following  in  support.  When  they  had 
gone  two  miles  the  enemy  was  seen  ahead  of  them. 

The  country  was  a  dead  flat,  covered  at  short  intervals  with 
a  low  thick  jungle  and  dotted  with  sandy  hillocks.  It  was 
difficult  to  judge  of  the  strength  of  the  Sikh  force,  but  in 
order  to  oblige  them  to  display  it,  the  cavalry,  with  five 
troops  of  horse-artillery,  moved  forward,  and  as  the  infantry 
formed  into  line  opened  fire.  This  was  answered  by  a  very 
heavy  cannonade  on  the  part  of  the  enemy;  but  in  a  very 
short  time  the  rapid  fire  of  the  horse-artillery,  aided  by  two 
field  batteries,  so  discomfited  the  enemy's  gunners  that  their 
fire  gradually  subsided. 

In  order  to  allow  the  infantry  to  advance  without  the  artil- 
lery in  front  of  them  being  pushed  forward  too  closely  to  the 
jungle,  Sir  Hugh  Gough  ordered  a  portion  of  the  cavalry  to 
make  a  movement  on  the  enemy's  flanks.  The  3d  Light 
Dragoons,  the  Governor-general's  Body-guard,  the  5th  Light 
Cavalry,  and  a  portion  of  the  4th  Lancers  dashed  round  the 


160  THROUGH    THE    SIKH   WAR 

left  of  the  Sikh  array,  and  sweeping  along  the  whole  of  its 
rear,  forced  the  artillerymen  to  leave  their  guns,  and  put  their 
cavalry  to  flight.  At  the  same  time  the  remainder  of  the  4th 
Lancers  and  the  gth  Irregular  Cavalry,  with  the  Light  Field 
Battery,  performed  a  brilliant  charge  round  the  enemy's  right. 
Successful  as  these  operations  were,  they  would  have  been 
much  more  so  had  not  the  enemy  been  so  hidden  in  the  jungle 
that  their  position  could  scarcely  be  made  out. 

The  British  guns  again  opened  fire  and  the  infantry  ad- 
vanced. Evening  was  now  falling,  and  the  increasing  dark- 
ness added  to  the  difficulty  of  the  attack  through  the  thick 
jungle. 

The  Sikhs  fought  stoutly,  and  several  times  clung  to  their 
positions  until  driven  from  them  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet; 
but  they  were  not  able  to  withstand  the  steady  pressure  of  the 
British  advance,  and,  astounded  and  discomfited  at  the  unex- 
pected valour  of  a  foe  whom  they  professed  to  despise,  they 
fell  back  from  point  to  point,  and  finally  made  off  in  the 
darkness.  Had  the  battle  commenced  at  an  early  hour  the 
cavalry  would  have  converted  the  defeat  of  the  enemy  into  a 
rout.  As  it  was,  seventeen  of  their  twenty  guns  were  cap- 
tured, and  their  losses  in  killed  and  wounded  were  very  severe. 
Lai  Singh  himself  was  wounded,  and  had  a  narrow  escape  of 
being  taken  prisoner. 

The  British  loss  was  sixteen  officers  and  two  hundred  men 
killed,  and  forty-eight  officers  and  six  hundred  and  nine  men 
wounded.  Sir  Robert  Sale,  the  hero  of  Jellalabad,  was  among 
those  mortally  wounded.  The  defeated  Sikhs  made  their  way 
back  to  Ferozeshah,  while  the  British  returned  to  Moodkee, 
which  they  reached  at  midnight.  The  next  morning  two 
heavy  guns,  escorted  by  the  6th  Light  Infantry,  and  the  4ist, 
reached  Moodkee.  Their  march  had  been  a  long  and  fatigu- 
ing one,  as  they  had  made  twenty-seven  miles  through  an  arid 
desert,  and  were  overcome  with  thirst  and  fatigue,  when  some 
elephants  sent  out  with  water  to  meet  them  brought  them 


\& 

MOODKEE   AND   FEROZESHAH 


161 


relief.  It  was  late  in  the  evening  before  the  column  came 
in,  and  in  order  to  give  the  men  time  to  recover  from  their 
fatigue  it  was  decided  to  halt  for  another  day. 

It  was  settled  that  the  sick,  wounded,  and  baggage  should 
be  left  in  the  little  fort  at  Moodkee,  with  a  regiment  and  a 
half  of  infantry  to  protect  them  should  the  enemy's  cavalry 
work  round  to  the  rear  of  the  army.  Messengers  were  sent 
off  to  Ferozepore  to  inform  Sir  John  Littler,  who  commanded 
there,  of  the  victory  at  Moodkee,  and  to  order  him  to  leave 
five  thousand  men  to  hold  the  town  and  watch  1'ej  Singh,  and 
to  march  with  his  five  thousand  remaining  men  and  twenty- 
one  guns  to  join  the  commander-in-chief,  both  forces  to  march 
at  three  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  2ist.  Sir  Henry 
Hardinge  offered  to  serve  as  a  military  man  under  Sir  Hugh 
Gough,  and  was  appointed  second  in  command  of  the  army. 

The  marches  were  well  timed,  and  the  junction  with  Sir 
John  Littler's  force  was  effected  at  the  village  of  Alisriwala, 
within  sight  of  the  Sikh  camp,  at  one  o'clock. 

The  British  force  after  the  junction  had  been  effected  con- 
sisted of  five  thousand  six  hundred  and  seventy-four  Euro- 
peans and  twelve  thousand  and  fifty-three  natives,  with  sixty- 
five  guns;  the  Sikhs  numbered  twenty- five  thousand  regular 
troops  and  ten  thousand  irregulars,  with  eighty-eight  guns; 
while  Tej  Singh  with  his  twenty-three  thousand  regulars  and 
twenty-seven  guns  was  only  ten  miles  distant.  The  country 
was  a  dead  flat  studded  with  trees  and  jungle,  and  the  clouds 
of  dust  that  rose  beneath  the  feet  of  the  troops  rendered  it 
extremely  difficult  to  direct  their  movements  in  such  a  coun- 
try. Skirmishers  were  sent  forward  to  ascertain  the  exact 
position  of  the  enemy,  but  the  troops  were  allowed  to  rest  for 
some  time  after  their  hot  and  dusty  march.  The  commander- 
in-chief  would  gladly  have  waited  until  next  morning  before 
calling  upon  them  for  the  efforts  that  would  be  necessary  to 
carry  a  position  so  strong  as  that  occupied  by  the  Sikhs.  It 
was,  however,  impossible  to  wait,  for  there  was  no  water,  and 


162  THROUGH  THE  SIKH  WAR 

moreover  Tej  Singh  with  his  army  would  certainly  be  up  be- 
fore morning. 

At  Moodkee  Percy  had  seen  but  little  of  the  fighting, 
although  for  some  hours  he  had  been  under  fire.  His  place 
was  behind  Major  Broadfoot,  who  was  with  the  commander- 
in-chief's  staff.  The  jungle  at  first  and  the  darkness  after- 
wards shut  out  the  absolute  conflict  from  view;  and  as  the 
enemy's  cannon-balls  flew  overhead  or  ploughed  up  the  sand, 
and  the  air  resounded  with  the  sharp  short  ping  of  their  musket- 
balls,  his  feeling  as  he  sat  inactive  on  horseback  was  one  of 
far  greater  discomfort  than  he  had  felt  when  exposed  to  an 
even  heavier  fire  at  the  attack  on  his  uncle's  fortress.  That 
the  British  were  winning  he  knew  by  the  advance  that  was 
from  time  to  time  made  by  the  party,  and  by  the  fact  that  the 
firing  gradually  receded. 

"You  have  been  under  fire  before,  Groves,"  Major  Broad- 
foot  said  to  him,  "so  I  suppose  you  don't  mind  it." 

"I  certainly  don't  like  it,  sir.  Before,  I  had  something 
to  do  and  did  not  think  much  of  the  danger,  and  I  should 
not  at  all  mind  if  you  were  to  send  me  with  a  message  into 
the  thick  of  it,  but  to  sit  here  doing  nothing  with  balls  buzz- 
ing about  is  certainly  very  unpleasant." 

"It  is  unpleasant;  I  find  it  so  myself,"  the  major  said; 
"but  as  my  post  is  here  with  the  commander-in-chief,  and 
there  is  no  errand  on  which  I  can  send  you,  we  must  sit  it 
out.  If  the  general  wants  to  send  a  message  and  his  aides-de- 
camp are  all  away,  I  will  tell  him  that  you  will  carry  it  for 
him." 

There  was,  however,  no  message  to  be  sent.  Beyond  the 
fact  that  the  troops  were  steadily  advancing,  the  commander- 
in-chief  himself  knew  but  little  of  what  was  going  on.  It  was 
a  soldier's  battle.  Except  for  the  flank  movements  of  the 
cavalry  there  was  no  manoeuvring.  Each  regiment  pressed 
straight  forward,  pushing  the  enemy  back  wherever  it  found 
him. 


MOODKEE   AND    FEROZESHAH  163 

"We  shall  see  more  of  it  to-day,  Groves,"  the  major  said  as 
they  were  waiting  for  the  orders  for  the  troops  to  advance 
against  the  Sikh  intrenchments.  "There  is  daylight,  and  as 
the  task  of  carrying  that  position  will  certainly  be  a  severe 
one,  Sir  Hugh  will  move  forward  with  the  men,  and  is  likely 
to  be  in  the  thick  of  it." 

The  Sikh  intrenchment  was  about  a  mile  in  length  and  half 
a  mile  in  breadth,  including  within  its  area  the  strong  village 
of  Ferozeshah.  The  Sikhs  had  the  advantage  of  being  thor- 
oughly acquainted  with  the  country,  and  as  they  were  prepared 
for  an  attack  upon  either  side  of  their  position,  it  was  decided 
that  the  effort  should  be  made  against  the  long  front.  The 
British  were  formed  in  three  divisions,  commanded  respec- 
tively by  Major-general  Gilbert,  Sir  John  Littler,  and  Brigadier- 
general  Wallace.  They  were  formed  in  line,  with  the  whole 
of  the  artillery  in  the  centre,  with  the  exception  of  a  troop  of 
horse-artillery  on  each  flank  and  one  in  support.  The  second 
line  was  composed  of  the  cavalry  and  the  reserve  under  Sir 
Harry  Smith.  The  artillery  were  first  moved  to  the  front,  and 
the  battle  began  by  a  discharge  from  a  mortar  battery.  The 
Sikhs  did  not  reply,  and  the  whole  of  the  artillery  then  opened 
fire  to  ascertain  the  position  of  the  enemy's  batteries,  when  the 
Sikhs  at  once  responded. 

The  whole  line  then  advanced  and  again  the  artillery  opened 
fire.  This  movement  was  repeated  until  the  guns  were  within 
three  hundred  yards  of  the  enemy's  intrenchments.  In  spite 
of  the  much  more  rapid  fire  of  their  guns,  our  artillery  were 
unable  to  silence  that  of  the  enemy,  whose  pieces  were  pro- 
tected to  a  great  extent  by  the  earthworks.  Seeing  this,  the 
general  gave  the  order  for  the  infantry  to  advance  to  storm  the 
intrenchments.  General  Littler's  division  directed  its  march 
against  the  village,  and  by  so  doing  caused  an  opening  in  the 
line  between  it  and  Brigadier  Wallace's  division. 

In  spite  of  the  terrible  storm  of  grape  from  the  enemy's 
batteries  and  the  heavy  Sikh  musketry  fire,  Littler's  men  held 


164  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

on  their  way  until  close  up  to  the  works.     Then  they  were 
unable  longer  to  withstand  the  storm  of  fire,  and  fell  back. 

The  left  brigade  of  the  reserve  under  Sir  Harry  Smith  was 
at  once  ordered  forward  to  fill  up  the  opening  left  in  the  line, 
and  advanced  against  the  village  with  splendid  bravery. 
Wallace's  and  Gilbert's  divisions  on  the  right  and  centre  were 
more  successful  than  that  of  Littler,  and  gallantly  stormed  the 
intrenchments  in  front  of  them  in  spite  of  the  desperate  bravery 
of  the  Sikhs;  but  just  as  they  had  achieved  this  feat  night  fell 
suddenly,  as  it  does  in  India.  The  air  was  obscured  by  dust 
and  smoke;  none  knew  the  position  of  the  troops  to  the  right 
or  left  of  them.  Great  piles  of  dry  forage  were  alight  in  the 
Sikh  camp,  and  frequent  explosions  of  loose  powder  took 
place. 

Sir  Harry  Smith's  brigade  had  stormed  the  village  and  held 
it,  but  were  in  complete  ignorance  of  what  was  taking  place 
elsewhere;  while  Littler's  division,  which  had  suffered  terribly 
in  its  advance,  had  retired,  but  no  one  knew  in  which  direc- 
tion. Just  before  dark  the  3d  Dragoons,  on  the  extreme  right, 
were  ordered  to  charge,  and  dashed  headlong  into  the  Sikh 
camp,  adding  to  the  utter  confusion  that  prevailed  there,  and 
cutting  down  numbers  of  the  enemy,  but  losing  themselves  ten 
officers  and  a  hundred  and  twenty  men  out  of  four  hundred. 

To  advance  further  was  hopeless.  There  was  no  saying 
what  obstacles  might  be  encountered  in  the  darkness — friends 
might  fire  into  each  other,  regiments  lose  their  way  and  be 
destroyed,  and  all  order  and  regularity  be  lost.  Consequently 
Sir  Hugh  Gough,  fearing  to  keep  his  men  in  a  position  in 
which  they  would  be  exposed  to  be  overthrown  piecemeal  by 
rushes  of  the  enemy,  told  the  officers  about  him  to  ride  off  and 
order  all  the  troops  to  abandon  the  positions  they  had  won, 
and  retire  outside  the  intrenchments,  and  there  to  lie  down  in 
readiness  for  a  renewed  attack  in  the  early  morning.  Wallace's 
and  Gilbert's  divisions  obeyed  the  orders,  Sir  Harry  Smith's 
received  none,  but  after  holding  the  village  until  about  ten 


MOODKEE   AND    FEROZESHAH  165 

o'clock  at  night,  and  knowing  nothing  of  the  position  of  the 
troops  on  his  right,  he  abandoned  it  and  also  fell  back. 

The  position  of  the  British  was  most  serious;  the  where- 
abouts of  the  divisions  of  Sir  Harry  Smith  and  General  Littler 
could  not  be  discovered,  and  the  other  two  divisions,  thinned 
by  their  losses,  might  be  attacked  in  the  morning  by  a  vastly 
superior  force,  for  it  was  probable  that  Tej  Singh  with  his 
army  would  arrive  during  the  night.  The  Sikhs  had  withdrawn 
their  guns  as  the  British  rushed  forward  to  the  assault,  so 
that  their  artillery  was  still  intact,  and  as  soon  as  they  found  that 
their  intrenchments  were  evacuated  they  advanced  and  kept 
up  a  continuous  fire  of  cannon  and  musketry  at  the  unseen 
foe,  who  were  lying  but  a  hundred  and  fifty  yards  away. 
The  fire  of  one  of  the  batteries  was  so  destructive  that  Sir 
Henry  Hardinge  mounted  his  horse  and  called  to  the  8oth 
Regiment : 

"My  lads,  we  shall  have  no  sleep  until  we  take  those  guns." 
The  regiment  leapt  to  its  feet  and  at  once  advanced,  and,  sup- 
ported by  the  ist  Bengal  Europeans,  again  stormed  the  intrench- 
ments, drove  the  Sikhs  from  their  guns,  spiked  them,  and 
retired. 

Percy  had  had  nothing  to  do  during  the  advance,  but  when 
the  orders  were  given  for  the  troops  to  retire  he  had  assisted 
to  carry  them  to  the  different  regiments,  as  the  whole  of  Sir 
Henry  Hardinge's  staff,  with  the  exception  of  his  son,  had 
been  killed  or  wounded,  as  had  most  of  those  of  Sir  Hugh 
Gough.  Major  Broadfoot  had  fallen.  Captain  Nicholson, 
assistant  political  agent,  was  also  killed,  and  indeed  all  the 
political  agents  with  one  exception  were  either  killed  or 
wounded.  Percy  had  felt  almost  bewildered  with  the  roar  and 
din  of  the  battle;  but  the  feeling  of  excitement  was  so  great, 
that  although  officer  after  officer  fell  round  him  the  thought  of 
danger  to  himself  scarcely  entered  his  mind.  He  mechani- 
cally followed  with  the  rest  of  the  staff  as  the  general  had  rid- 
den hither  and  thither  along  the  line,  but  he  felt  almost  as  one 


166  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

in  a  dream  until  he  was  called  upon  with  all  the  rest  of  the 
officers  round  the  general  to  carry  orders  to  the  troops  to  retire. 

On  his  return  from  this  duty,  Sir  Henry  Hardinge  begged 
of  him  to  ride  off  and  to  try  and  discover  the  whereabouts  of 
the  missing  divisions;  and,  accompanied  by  his  two  men,  who 
had  kept  a  short  distance  behind  him  during  the  fight,  and  had 
both  escaped  unwounded,  he  rode  about  for  some  hours  in  the 
jungle,  but  without  success.  He  was,  indeed,  himself  lost, 
and  at  last  threw  himself  off  his  horse  to  wait  till  morning 
should  show  him  the  bearings  of  the  enemy's  camp.  But  few 
words  had  been  exchanged  between  him  and  his  followers 
during  the  ride,  for  he  was  still  dazed  by  the  battle,  and  was 
parched  with  thirst  and  exhausted  by  fatigue  and  emotion. 

"It  has  been  a  terrible  day,"  he  said,  as  he  threw  himself 
down  on  the  ground  after  flinging  the  bridle  over  a  bough  of  a 
low  tree  to  prevent  the  horse  from  straying. 

"It  has,  indeed,  sahib,"  Akram  Chunder  replied.  "Never 
did  I  hear  so  terrible  a  roar  of  fire.  I  thought  that  my  time 
had  come,  for  it  seemed  as  if  every  man  must  be  swept  away. 
It  looked  like  madness  to  attack  such  a  position.  I  did  not 
think  that  men  could  do  it." 

"It  was  wonderful,"  Bhop  Lai  joined  in;  "truly  the  British 
are  marvellous  fighters.  The  Sikhs  are  no  cowards,  and  yet 
though  they  must  have  been  two  to  one,  and  had  strong 
intrenchments  behind  which  their  guns  were  sheltered,  they 
could  not  withstand  them.  I  have  wondered  often  how  it  was 
that  so  many  kingdoms  have  been  conquered,  so  many  armies 
defeated,  by  your  countrymen.  Now  I  wonder  no  longer. 
When  you  said  that  the  English  would  certainly  beat  the  Sikhs 
I  thought  you  were  wrong,  thought  it  was  not  for  me  to  contra- 
dict you.  Now  I  see  that  you  were  right.  The  Sikhs  have 
found  their  masters,  and  after  all  their  boasting  have  been 
defeated  on  their  own  ground,  and  with  numbers,  position, 
and  everything  in  their  favour." 

"They  are  not  defeated  yet,"  Percy  said;  "they  have  again 


MOODKEE   AND    FEROZESHAH  16T 

entered  their  intrenchments,  and  if  Tej  Singh  comes  up  dur- 
ing the  night  their  numbers  will  be  overwhelming." 

''The  English  will  win, "  Bhop  Lai  said  carelessly;  "they 
are  not  to  be  conquered.  Besides,  the  Sikhs  move  slowly, 
and  Tej  Singh  will  not  be  up  till  morning." 

They  had  some  bread  and  cold  meat  in  their  valises.  Percy 
had  a  flask  of  brandy  and  water,  and  his  two  followers'  water- 
skins  hung  from  their  horses'  saddles.  Percy  was  only  able 
to  eat  a  few  mouthfuls,  and  then  fell  asleep;  but  his  follow- 
ers ate  a  hearty  meal,  and  remained  smoking  and  talking 
until,  when  day  began  to  break,  they  aroused  their  master. 
Bhop  Lai  climbed  up  into  the  highest  tree  he  could  find,  and 
exclaimed : 

"There  are  the  intrenchments,  sahib,  two  miles  away  at 
least." 

They  mounted  and  rode  off  with  all  speed,  and  found  the 
troops  already  forming  up.  The  commander-in-chief  and  Sir 
Henry  Hardinge  placed  themselves  in  front  of  the  troops  in 
order  to  prevent  them  from  firing.  Moving  round  to  the 
right,  they  entered  the  intrenchments  with  but  slight  opposi- 
tion. The  enemy's  guns  were  taken  in  reverse,  and  wheeling 
round,  past  the  village  of  Ferozeshah,  the  British  line  swept 
down  through  the  Sikh  encampment,  and  did  not  halt  until 
they  reached  the  works  on  the  opposite  side.  Scarcely  had 
they  won  the  Sikh  position  and  captured  his  guns,  seventy- 
four  in  number,  when  the  army  of  Tej  Singh  appeared  in  view, 
marching  towards  them. 

The  divisions  of  Smith  and  Littler,  which  had  passed  the 
night  in  the  jungle,  had  joined  the  force  just  as  they  entered 
the  enemy's  works,  and  the  troops  now  prepared  to  defend 
the  position  they  had  won. 

No  attack,  however,  was  made.  The  crowd  of  Sikh  fugi- 
tives made  for  the  army  they  saw  advancing  to  their  assist- 
ance, and  rushing  down  in  confusion  disordered  its  front  line 
and  communicated  their  panic  to  the  newly-arrived  troops. 


168  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

After  opening  fire  for  some  time  at  a  distance  that  rendered 
it  perfectly  innocuous,  Tej  Singh's  troops  turned  and  marched 
away  to  the  river,  which  they  crossed  without  a  halt. 

The  British  were  too  weak  in  cavalry  to  follow  up  the  en- 
emy. Several  regiments  had  been  sent  off  at  daybreak  to 
Ferozepore  in  order  to  water  their  horses,  as  they  would  have 
been  useless  against  the  Sikh  intrenchments,  while  those  that 
remained  were  unfit  for  active  work,  the  animals  having  been 
twenty-four  hours  without  food  or  water. 

The  delight  of  the  army  was  immense  at  this  unexpectedly 
easy  termination  of  a  fight  that  at  one  time  had  looked  well- 
nigh  lost,  and  as  Sir  Hugh  Gough  and  the  governor-general 
rode  down  their  lines  they  saluted  them  with  outbursts  of 
cheers. 

The  loss,  however,  had  been  heavy,  and  had  fallen  chiefly 
upon  the  Europeans,  who  had  four  hundred  and  eighty-eight 
killed  and  eleven  hundred  and  three  wounded  out  of  a  total 
of  six  hundred  and  ninety-four  killed  and  one  thousand  seven 
hundred  and  twenty-one  wounded,  of  whom  five  hundred  and 
ninety-five  died  subsequently  or  were  permanently  disabled. 

As  soon  as  the  Sikhs  retreated,  every  effort  was  made  to 
succour  the  wounded,  and  by  noon  all  were  in  quarters  at 
Ferozepore  and  provided  with  cots  and  blankets. 

Among  the  killed  were  Major  Somerset,  military  secretary 
to  the  governor-general;  Colonel  Wallace;  Major  Baldwin, 
an  old  Peninsular  officer;  and  many  other  officers  distin- 
guished for  their  bravery.  The  62d,  which  went  into  the 
battle  weak  in  numbers,  had  seven  officers  killed  and  ten 
wounded,  and  seventy-six  rank  and  file  killed,  and  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty-four  wounded.  This  regiment  belonged  to 
General  Littler's  division,  which  had  advanced  against  the 
strongest  part  of  the  Sikh  position. 

After  the  engagement  was  over  Percy  reported  himself  to 
Captain  Mills,  the  only  one  of  the  political  officers  who  had 
escaped  unwounded. 


MOODKEE   AND   FEROZESHAH 

"I  am  glad  that  lad  went  through  it  uninjured,"  Sir  Henry 
Hardinge  said  when  Captain  Mills  reported  that  he  was  the 
only  assistant  available  for  service.  "  He  is  a  very  plucky 
young  fellow,  and  I  noticed  him  several  times  during  the 
fight.  He  was  always  cool  and  collected  even  under  the 
heaviest  fire,  and  Major  Broadfoot  reported  to  me  very 
strongly  upon  his  conduct  in  going  into  the  Sikh  camp  and 
obtaining  for  us  a  trustworthy  report  of  their  strength  and 
intentions.  He  mentioned  that  he  was  only  a  volunteer 
serving  without  pay,  and  appointed  temporarily  by  the  Resi- 
dent at  Loodiana  on  the  civil  staff.  I  shall  be  glad  if,  when 
you  send  in  a  written  report  to  me,  you  will  specially  men- 
tion his  name." 

Although  the  Sikh  invasion  had  been  repelled  with  such 
heavy  loss  of  guns  and  men,  the  British  were  in  no  condition 
to  follow  up  their  advantage.  Were  they  to  cross  the  river 
they  might  expect  to  meet  forces  far  larger  than  those  they 
had  defeated.  They  were  without  heavy  guns  with  which  to 
attack  fortified  towns,  and  their  numbers  were  altogether  in- 
sufficient for  such  an  enterprise  as  the  conquest  of  the  Pun- 
jaub.  They  were  therefore  forced  for  a  time  to  remain 
inactive,  pending  the  arrival  of  reinforcements  and  siege- 
guns. 


CHAPTER  X 

ALIWAL   AND   SOBRAON 

"PINDING  that  the  British  army  did  not  follow  up  its  suc- 
•I  cess  at  Ferozeshah,  the  Sikhs  determined  to  maintain 
their  position  on  the  left  bank,  and  proceeded  to  construct  a 
bridge  of  boats  at  Sobraon,  not  far  from  the  spot  where  they 
had  crossed  the  river  in  their  flight.  In  front  of  the  head  of 
this  bridge  an  exceedingly  strong  work  was  thrown  up.  The 
position  was  very  well  chosen,  the  bridge  being  placed  in  a 
curve  of  the  river,  and  the  artillery  posted  on  the  bank,  which 
on  their  side  was  high,  was  therefore  able  to  sweep  the 
ground  across  which  a  force  must  advance  to  attack  the  work. 
Ten  thousand  men  under  the  Sirdar  Runjoor  Singh  were  also 
thrown  across  the  river  near  Loodiana,  in  order  -not  only  to 
menace  the  place  with  its  small  garrison,  but  to  cut  off  the 
passage  of  supplies  for  Ferozepore  and  to  interrupt  the  com- 
munications between  the  two  posts. 

As  soon  as  the  force  at  Meerut,  consisting  of  the  gth  and 
1 6th  Lancers,  the  loth  and  53d  Foot,  and  the  43d  and  5gth 
Native  Regiments,  arrived  with  the  battering-train,  steps  were 
taken  to  reinforce  Loodiana  and  Basseean  with  some  heavy 
guns;  additional  troops  were  sent  to  each  of  these  posts,  and 
the  sick,  with  the  women  and  children,  were  removed  thence 
and  sent  to  Umballa. 

Sir  Harry  Smith's  division  was  increased  to  seven  thousand 

170 


^v  « 

>     .. 

ALIWAL   AND    SOBRAON  .  171 

men  and  twenty-four  guns,  and  he  was  despatched  to  drive 
the  force  that  threatened  Loodiana  across  the  river  and  to 
cover  the  line  of  the  British  communications. 

The  whole  country  in  that  quarter  was  in  a  state  of  disorder. 
The  advance  of  Runjoor  Singh  had  caused  great  excitement 
among  the  peasantry,  while  it  created  something  like  a  panic 
among  the  European  residents  of  Umballa  and  Simla,  either 
of  which  places  could  have  been  reached  and  plundered  by 
the  Sikhs,  who  from  the  crossing  point  near  Loodiana  were  two 
days'  march  nearer  to  them  than  was  the  army  of  the  com- 
mander-in-chief.  It  was  all-important  to  Sir  Harry  Smith  to 
reach  Loodiana,  where,  being  on  the  flank  of  the  Sikh  army 
should  they  advance,  it  would  be  necessary  for  them  to  meet 
and  defeat  him  before  they  ventured  upon  a  raiding  expedi- 
tion. But  to  do  this  it  was  necessary  to  pass  within  a  short 
distance  of  Runjoor  Singh's  position,  and  as  the  column 
passed  along  the  Sikhs  sallied  out,  opened  a  heavy  fire,  and 
cut  off  a  considerable  portion  of  the  baggage  of  the  force, 
taking  several  officers  prisoners.  Sir  Harry  Smith  did  not 
suffer  himself  to  be  diverted  from  his  object  or  to  be  forced 
to  fight  a  battle  save  on  ground  of  his  own  choosing.  Without 
returning  the  fire  he  pressed  forward  until  he  reached  Loo- 
diana, the  troops  being  completely  exhausted  with  the  efforts 
they  had  made. 

Some  more  political  officers  having  come  up  with  the  force 
from  Meerut,  Sir  Henry  Hardinge  had  placed  Percy's  services 
at  the  disposal  of  Sir  Harry  Smith.  "He  is  a  mere  lad,"  he 
said  to  the  latter,  "but  you  will  find  him  quite  as  valuable  for 
most  purposes  as  any  older  man  would  be.  He  speaks  the 
language  like  a  native,  can  go  in  disguise  and  obtain  any 
information  you  may  require,  and  has  plenty  of  pluck.  He 
was  close  behind  the  commander-in-chief  and  myself  all 
through  the  fight  here,  and  was  one  of  the  few  of  the  staff  who 
escaped  uninjured.  He  is  a  volunteer  serving  without  pay,  no 
doubt  in  the  hope  of  obtaining  civil  employment  under  the 


172  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

government  in  the  future.  This  he  has  already  richly  earned, 
not  only  by  his  service  in  the  battle  of  Ferozeshah,  but  by  ob- 
taining most  valuable  news  by  going  in  disguise  to  the  Sikh 
camp  before  they  crossed  the  river.  Poor  Broadfoot  reported 
on  his  conduct  very  warmly  indeed,  in  almost  the  last  official 
document  he  sent  me  in,  and  having  seen  the  young  fellow 
under  fire  I  shall  certainly,  at  the  proper  time,  take  advantage 
of  Broadfoot's  report  to  recommend  him  to  the  Board  of 
Directors  for  an  appointment  in  the  Civil  Service,  and  for 
special  employment  upon  this  frontier." 

Being  recommended  to  him  in  such  a  manner,  Sir  Harry 
Smith  had  'at  once  taken  Percy  upon  his  staff,  and  more  than 
once  sent  for  him  and  questioned  him  as  to  the  country,  the 
width  of  the  river,  and  other  points;  and  as  Percy  had  on  his 
way  down  crossed  the  Sutlej  not  far  from  Aliwal,  he  was  able 
to  give  some  valuable  information  on  the  subject.  As  soon 
as  they  reached  Loodiana  he  went  to  see  his  friend  Mr.  Fullar- 
ton. 

"  Back  again,  Groves  ?  You  were  fortunate  in  getting  through 
that  fight  at  Ferozeshah,  where  poor  Broadfoot  and  several 
other  politicals  were  killed  or  wounded.  I  had  a  note  from 
him  written  the  day  before,  saying  how  useful  he  had  found 
you.  You  have  come  up  with  Sir  Harry  Smith,  I  suppose?  " 

"Yes,  sir,  they  are  very  short  of  officers  who  speak  the 
language,  and  so  sent  me  on  with  him." 

"It  shows  they  think  well  of  you;  I  am  glad  you  are  doing 
credit  to  my  recommendation.  You  see  it  was  very  much 
better  for  you  to  go  with  the  army  than  to  remain  here  with 
me.  Now  you  have  been  through  two  battles,  and  have  fairly 
earned  your  right  to  a  permanent  post  in  the  service.  But, 
mind,  don't  let  them  put  you  on  the  uncovenanted  branch; 
you  will  get  very  few  chances  of  real  promotion  there.  Should 
an  offer  be  made  to  you,  you  had  better  decline  respectfully 
and  say  that  you  would  rather  wait  in  the  hope  of  entering  the 
Company's  service  in  the  regular  way.  Three  or  four  years' 


IT-  <S 

ALIWAL  AND    SOBRAON  173 

waiting  would  do  you  no  harm,  though  I  do  not  suppose  you 
will  have  to  wait  anything  like  that  time  before  you  get 
appointed  to  our  service." 

"  I  am  quite  content  to  wait,  sir,  for  at  my  age  it  would  be 
absurd  to  think  of  getting  such  an  important  appointment; 
but  I  am  very  glad,  indeed,  to  have  found  the  opportunity  of 
seeing  so  much." 

"  We  shall  have  another  battle  here  in  a  day  or  two, "  Mr. 
Fullarton  said.  "I  have  just  seen  Sir  Harry.  He  says  he 
must  give  the  troops  a  couple  of  days'  rest  before  he  advances 
to  attack  Runjoor  Singh.  Indeed  there  is  no  hurry;  now  that 
he  is  here  the  Sikhs  dare  not  advance,  and  he  is  therefore 
master  of  the  situation.  It  was  a  bad  affair  losing  so  much 
of  the  baggage  at  Buddeewal,  but  the  general  was  right  in 
not  bringing  on  a  battle.  The  troops  were  worn  out  with 
their  long  march,  and  would  have  fought  at  a  great  disadvan- 
tage. It  would  not  have  made  much  difference  to  the  white 
soldiers,  who  are  always  ready  to  fight  however  tired  they  may 
be;  but  it  is  not  so  with  the  natives.  Fatigue,  hunger,  or 
thirst  always  depress  their  spirits,  and  a  native  who,  in  the 
morning,  would  have  fought  stoutly  by  the  side  of  our  own 
men,  would  be  worth  nothing  if  taken  into  the  field  tired  and 
hungry  on  the  evening  of  the  same  day.  I  hear  that  some  of 
the  native  regiments  did  not  do  at  all  well  at  Ferozeshah,  and 
I  have  no  doubt  that  this  was  the  reason  of  it.  They  will  have 
a  very  short  march  before  they  fight  this  time." 

After  a  day's  rest  the  force  moved  out  again  to  Buddeewal. 
Runjoor  Singh's  force  had  just  received  a  reinforcement  of 
four  thousand  regular  troops,  with  twelve  guns,  and  his  army 
now  amounted  to  nineteen  thousand  men  and  sixty  guns. 
Early  in  the  morning  of  the  28th  of  January  Sir  Harry  Smith 
marched  from  Buddeewal  towards  the  enemy.  The  Sikhs  were 
so  inspirited  by  the  success  that  had  attended  their  attack 
on  the  column  during  its  passage — a  success  which  they 
attributed  to  fear  on  the  part  of  the  British — that,  instead  of 


/ 

174  THROUGH   THE  SIKH   WAR 

waiting  to  be  attacked  in  the  intrenchments  they  had  formed, 
they  moved  forward,  and  took  up  their  post  in  the  open,  the 
village  of  Aliwal  being  the  key  of  the  position. 

The  troops  were  already  advancing  in  order  of  battle,  and  a 
column  was  at  once  directed  to  attack  and  carry  the  village, 
the  artillery  preparing  the  way  by  a  heavy  fire.  The  Sikh 
guns  opened  all  along  their  line,  but  their  fire  was  very  wild; 
most  of  the  shot  went  far  overhead,  and  the  attacking  force 
suffered  but  little.  They  did  not  fire  a  shot  in  return,  but 
when  within  a  short  distance  of  the  village  went  at  it  with  a 
rush,  carrying  it  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet,  and  driving  the 
Sikh  infantry  headlong  before  them.  The  guns  defending  it 
fell  into  their  hands,  and  as  soon  as  they  established  themselves 
in  the  village,  the  rest  of  the  force  moved  forward  with  admi- 
rable regularity,  and  the  whole  Sikh  line  was  driven  backwards, 
leaving  their  guns  behind  them. 

The  i6th  Lancers  charged  the  enemy,  who  were  falling  back 
sullenly  and  in  order.  The  Sikhs  threw  themselves  down  on 
the  ground  and  slashed  at  the  horses  with  their  swords  as  they 
passed  over  them,  or  discharged  their  muskets  at  their  riders, 
and  the  regiment  lost  upwards  of  a  hundred  men  killed  and 
wounded.  As  they  fell  back  the  horse-artillery  opened  upon 
the  dense  masses  of  Sikhs,  the  infantry  continued  their  steady 
advance,  and  the  cavalry  again  and  again  charged.  Instead 
of  retiring  towards  their  intrenchments,  which  having  been 
denuded  of  their  guns  were  now  untenable,  the  enemy  retreated 
direct  upon  the  river,  which  they  crossed  at  the  ford.  Their 
loss  was  comparatively  small  to  that  which  they  had  suffered 
at  Ferozeshah,  but  the  whole  of  their  guns  fell  into  the  hands 
of  the  British. 

Only  one  had  been  carried  across  the  river.  This  was  cap- 
tured and  spiked  by  the  irregular  horse  and  horse-artillery, 
who  crossed  the  river  in  pursuit.  The  total  loss  of  the  British 
in  killed  and  wounded  in  the  battle  of  Aliwal  was  only  four 
hundred — an  astonishingly  small  amount  when  it  is  considered 


ALIWAL    AND    SOBRAON  175 

that  they  attacked  a  brave  enemy  of  double  their  strength  both 
in  men  and  guns.  The  victory  was  a  most  important  one.  It 
relieved  the  north-west  of  all  fear  of  invasion,  and  enabled  the 
commander-in-chief  to  direct  his  whole  attention  to  concen- 
trating his  force  against  the  main  body  of  the  Sikh  army  at 
Sobraon. 

Percy  had  watched  the  conflict  from  a  distance.  He  had, 
as  usual,  taken  his  place  among  the  staff  when  the  general 
mounted  his  horse  to  advance  against  the  Sikh  intrenchments : 
but  when  Sir  Harry  Smith's  eye  fell  upon  him  he  said,  "You 
will  not  ride  with  me  to-day,  Mr.  Groves.  I  can  have  no 
occasion  for  your  services  as  a  political  officer,  and  will  not 
have  you  risk  your  life  uselessly  by  your  exposing  yourself  to 
fire.  You  will,  therefore,  please  follow  at  considerable  dis- 
tance, and  will,  when  we  get  within  the  enemy's  range,  take 
up  any  position  you  like  that  will  enable  you  to  see  what  is 
going  on  and  at  the  same  time  keep  you  out  of  fire." 

Percy  looked  a  little  downcast,  and  Sir  Harry  added  kindly: 
"It  is  no  reflection  on  your  courage,  lad,  that  I  send  you 
back.  The  governor-general  himself  told  me  how  fearlessly 
you  had  exposed  yourself  at  Ferozeshah;  but  as  I  do  not  re- 
quire you  on  duty  I  have  no  justification  for  taking  you  with 
me  under  a  heavy  fire." 

Percy  brightened  up  as  he  rode  off.  Sir  Harry  Smith's  staff 
were  for  the  most  part  strangers  to  him,  as  he  had  not  been 
connected  with  it  until  it  marched,  and  he  had  feared  at  first 
that  it  might  be  thought  the  general  had  ordered  him  to  the 
rear  because  he  doubted  his  steadiness  under  fire. 

"  I  am  only  to  look  on  to-day,"  he  said  to  his  two  followers 
as  they  joined  him  when  he  reined  up  his  horse  on  a  little 
knoll  affording  a  view  of  the  enemy's  position  half  a  mile 
away. 

"And  a  very  good  thing  too,  sahib,"  Bhop  Lai  said  bluntly. 
"  I  had  quite  enough  of  being  shot  at  the  other  day,  and  have 
no  stomach  for  sitting  on  horseback  again  doing  nothing  while 


176  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

they  are  pelting  us  with  shot  and  bullets.  If  the  sahib  said 
'Charge!'  I  would  follow  into  the  middle  of  the  Sikh  in- 
campment,  but  as  for  sitting  doing  nothing  I  want  no  more 
of  it." 

"Besides,"  Akram  Chunder  put  in,  "we  know  all  about  it 
now;  for  if  what  people  say  is  true  as  to  Runjoor  Singh's 
strength,  the  odds  are  not  so  great  as  they  were  at  Ferozeshah, 
even  though  they  have  seventy  guns  to  our  thirty.  But  what 
is  that?  The  British  are  not  to  be  stopped  by  guns;  they 
will  do  as  they  did  the  other  day,  go  right  at  the  Sikhs  and 
beat  them.  The  Sikhs  have  thrown  away  their  only  chance 
by  coming  out  from  their  intrenchments.  Besides,  they  will 
not  fight  so  well  as  they  did  last  time.  Then  they  thought 
they  were  invincible,  now  they  know  that  the  British  are 
better  fighters  than  they  are,  and  that  makes  all  the  differ- 
ence." 

"We  may  as  well  dismount,"  Percy  said,  "and  picket  the 
horses  down  behind.  We  can  see  well  enough  over  the  jungle 
on  foot,  and  if  the  Sikh  gunners  should  notice  three  mounted 
men  they  might  take  us  for  officers  of  importance  and  send  a 
few  shot  in  this  direction." 

The  Sikh  gunners,  however,  were  too  occupied  with  the 
foes  marching  against  them  to  notice  the  detached  figures, 
and  no  shot  came  in  their  direction  during  the  battle.  Percy 
and  his  two  followers  watched  the  capture  of  Aliwal,  and  then 
saw  the  whole  British  force  advance,  and  with  scarce  a  pause 
push  back  the  Sikhs  all  along  the  line. 

"Truly  it  is  wonderful,"  Bhop  Lai  said,  stroking  his  beard. 
"These  men  in  red  coats  make  no  more  of  the  fire  of  sixty 
guns  than  if  they  were  children's  playthings.  As  for  the 
Sikh  infantry,  though  more  than  twice  their  numbers,  they 
seem  to  sweep  them  before  them  like  chaff.  I  thought  I  knew 
something  of  fighting,  but  I  feel  to-day  that  I  know  nothing, 
for  I  have  seen  nothing  like  this  from  the  day  when  I  first 
handled  a  sword. " 


. 

ALIWAL   AND    SOBRAON  177 


"The  loss  cannot  have  been  very  heavy,"  Percy  said,  "it 
has  been  done  too  quickly." 

"That  is  the  way,  sahib,"  Akram  Chunder  remarked.  "If 
men  have  but  the  courage  to  go  on  in  the  face  of  a  heavy  fire 
they  suffer  much  less  than  if  they  hesitate  and  delay;  but 
it  is  only  lions  who  rush  forward  with  sixty  cannon  firing  at 
them,  to  say  nothing  of  thousands  of  men  with  muskets. 
That  is  what  takes  the  life  out  of  the  Sikh  fighting.  They  are 
brave,  but  they  are  accustomed  to  victory,  and  when  they  see 
men  rushing  on  against  them  in  spite  of  the  fire  which  they 
thought  would  have  swept  them  all  away,  they  lose  their  con- 
fidence in  themselves,  and  say,  what  use  is  it  to  fight  against 
men  like  these?  " 

"  Bring  up  the  horses,  Bhop  Lai ;  we  may  as  well  ride 
forward  now  that  the  battle  is  nearly  over,  for  I  believe  the 
roll  of  musketry  and  the  discharge  of  guns  still  going  on  are 
caused  by  our  troops  firing  at  the  Sikhs  as  they  recross  the 
river." 

Great  was  the  satisfaction  that  prevailed  among  the  troops 
at  the  splendid  victory  they  had  gained  over  an  enemy  of 
nearly  thrice  their  force  in  men  and  guns,  and  that  with  a  loss 
which,  considering  the  numbers  engaged  and  the  strength  of 
the  intrenchments,  was  trifling.  As  after  so  crushing  a  defeat 
as  this  there  was  little  chance  of  Loodiana  being  again  threat- 
ened, or  of  any  large  force  endeavouring  to  intercept  our 
communications,  Sir  Harry  Smith  marched  back  with  his 
army  and  rejoined  the  commander-in-chief  on  the  8th  of 
February. 

On  the  following  day  the  heavy  guns  from  Delhi  arrived, 
and  orders  were  given  for  the  whole  force  to  prepare  for  the 
attack  on  Sobraon.  During  the  fortnight  that  Sir  Harry  Smith 
had  been  absent  the  Sikhs  had  continued  to  labour  unceasingly 
at  their  intrenchments,  which  were  erected  under  the  super- 
intendence of  two  or  three  of  the  foreign  officers  who  had 
been  in  Runjeet  Singh's  service.  These  were  not  regarded 


178  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

by  the  Sikhs  with  the  same  hostility  with  which  they  viewed 
Colonel  Groves  and  two  or  three  other  English-speaking 
officers.  They  had,  indeed,  been  deprived  of  their  commands 
at  the  demand  of  the  army,  who  objected  to  the  European 
discipline  and  to  the  severe  methods  by  which  it  was  enforced; 
but  several  of  them  had  been  allowed  to  remain  in  the  country, 
and  the  Sikhs,  when  the  war  began,  gladly  availed  themselves 
of  their  scientific  knowledge  in  the  erection  of  intrench- 
ments. 

The  enemy  had  surrounded  their  position  with  works  of 
great  strength,  which  could  only  be  surmounted  by  the  aid  of 
scaling-ladders.  The  works  were  so  arranged  that  they  afforded 
complete  protection  to  three  lines  of  infantry,  one  above 
another,  who  could  thus  pour  a  tremendous  fire  upon  an 
advancing  foe.  These  works  were  held  by  34,000  men  with 
seventy  guns.  They  were  connected  by  a  well-built  bridge, 
and  also  by  a  ford,  with  another  camp  of  20,000  men  across 
the  river,  and  the  guns  of  this  force,  placed  on  the  high  bank, 
were  in  a  position  to  play  upon  the  flanks  of  an  army  advanc- 
ing against  Sobraon. 

To  attack  this  formidable  position  Sir  Hugh  Gough  had  but 
16,224  men,  of  whom  6533  were  Europeans  and  9691  natives. 
His  force,  therefore,  was  numerically  inferior  by  1500  men 
to  that  with  which  he  attacked  the  Sikhs  at  Ferozeshah.  His 
artillery  force  had,  however,  been  augmented  to  ninety-nine 
guns  by  the  addition  of  thirty-four  heavy  guns  and  mortars, 
and  the  commander-in-chief  relied  upon  his  artillery  to  clear 
the  way  for  the  assault  of  his  infantry.  The  army  was  to  be 
in  motion  at  half-past  three  in  the  morning,  in  order  that 
darkness  should  not,  as  at  Moodkee  and  Ferozeshah,  intervene 
to  prevent  the  full  results  of  victory  being  obtained. 

The  troops  were  under  arms  punctually,  and  at  precisely 
the  hour  named  marched  in  silence  against  the  Sikh  position. 
The  battering  guns  and  most  of  the  field  batteries  took  up  their 
post  in  an  extended  semicircle,  so  as  to  open  fire  against 


ALIWAL   AND    SOBRAON  17i> 

every  point  of  the  Sikh  intrenchments.  It  was  intended  that 
they  should  commence  the  attack  as  soon  as  it  was  light  enough 
for  the  men  to  point  their  guns.  A  heavy  mist,  however,  hung 
over  the  country,  and  it  was  not  until  half-past  six  that  this 
lifted  sufficiently  to  allow  a  view  to  be  obtained  of  the  enemy's 
works.  Then  the  cannon  opened  along  the  whole  line,  and  a 
storm  of  shot  and  shell  was  poured  in  by  the  gun  and  mortar 
batteries,  while  rockets  were  discharged  in  numbers  against 
the  intrenchments. 

The  Sikhs  replied  with  equal  vigour,  and  for  a  time  the  roar 
of  artillery  was  unbroken.  It  had  been  intended  that  the 
cannonade  should  be  continued  for  four  hours  before  the 
infantry  were  called  upon  to  make  their  advance,  but  so 
rapidly  did  the  gunners  work  their  pieces  that  the  ammunition 
carried  with  them  was  becoming  exhausted  long  before  that 
time  had  elapsed,  and  the  elephants  who  should  have  brought 
up  reserves  had  become  unmanageable  from  their  terror  at  the 
tremendous  din.  But  even  had  the  fire  continued  during  the 
whole  day,  it  could  not  have  made  any  serious  impression 
upon  such  strong  and  extended  earthworks,  and  its  object  was 
rather  to  shake  the  courage  of  the  defenders  than  to  produce 
any  material  damage.  The  loss  of  the  Sikhs  was  afterwards 
found  to  have  been  heavy,  but  they  and  their  general  were 
confidant  that  they  could  repulse  any  attack  upon  the  tremen- 
dous works  they  had  erected,  Tej  Singh  having  been  assured 
by  his  chief  engineer,  a  French  officer  named  Mouton,  that 
the  position  was  absolutely  impregnable. 

While  the  artillery  duel  was  in  progress  the  British  infantry 
had  remained  inactive  in  the  rear  of  the  guns,  longing  for  the 
time  when  they  should  be  called  upon  to  take  their  share  in 
the  action;  and  there  was  a  general  feeling  of  satisfaction 
when  the  fire  began  to  slacken,  and  orders  were  given  for  the 
advance  to  begin.  On  the  left  were  two  brigades  of  General 
Sir  Robert  Dick's  division;  these  were  to  commence  the 
engagement  The  seventh  brigade,  commanded  by  General 


180  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

Stacey,  was  to  lead  the  attack,  headed  by  the  icth  Foot  rein- 
forced by  the  53d,  and  supported  by  the  other  brigade. 

General  Gilbert's  division  was  in  the  centre,  Sir  Harry 
Smith's  on  the  right,  while  Brigadier-general  Campbell's  com- 
mand was  thrown  back  between  Gilbert's  right  and  Sir  Harry 
Smith's  left.  A  part  of  the  cavalry  threatened  to  cross  a  ford 
and  attack  the  enemy's  horse  on  the  opposite  bank,  the  rest  of 
the  cavalry  were-in  reserve.  At  nine  o'clock  Stacey's  brigade, 
supported  by  three  batteries,  moved  to  the  attack.  The  former 
marched  steadily  on  in  line,  the  latter  took  up  successive  posi- 
tions at  a  gallop,  until  within  three  hundred  yards  of  the  heavy 
batteries  of  the  enemy.  The  fire  of  cannon,  camel  guns,  and 
musketry  was  so  tremendous,  that  it  seemed  to  the  lookers-on 
impossible  that  any  troops  could  advance  successfully  under  it. 

The  two  British  regiments,  and  the  43d  and  5pth  Native 
Infantry  brigaded  with  them,  advanced,  however,  with  splen- 
did bravery.  This  brigade  had  not  been  present  at  the  previ- 
ous battles,  and  had  been  specially  selected  for  the  desperate 
service  of  effecting  the  first  breach  in  the  enemy's  lines  because 
their  ranks  were  still  intact,  and  they  had  not  gone  through  the 
terrible  ordeal  at  Ferozeshah  which  had,  in  spite  of  their 
eventual  success,  greatly  impressed  those  engaged  in  it  with 
the  courage  and  obstinacy  of  the  Sikhs  in  defending  a  strong 
position.  Well  did  the  seventh  brigade  deserve  the  confidence 
the  commander-in-chief  placed  in  it.  With  scarcely  a  pause 
the  troops  pressed  steadily  forward,  surmounted  every  obstacle 
until  they  reached  the  crest  of  the  intrenchments,  and  drove 
the  Sikhs  from  their  guns. 

The  moment  the  success  of  the  attack  was  apparent  General 
Gilbert  and  Sir  Harry  Smith  were  ordered  to  advance  with 
their  divisions,  and  Brigadier  Ashburnham  began  to  move 
forward  his  brigade  to  support  Stacey.  Gilbert's  advance 
took  him  in  front  of  the  centre  and  strongest  portion  of  the 
enemy's  line,  and  although  unsupported  by  artillery,  the  291)1 
and  the  ist  Light  Infantry  dashed  forward  under  a  withering 


AL1WAL   AND   SOBRAON  181 

fire  and  crossed  a  dry  nullah  in  front  of  the  intrenchments, 
but  they  then  found  themselves  in  front  of  a  high  wall  too 
steep  for  them  to  climb  and  exposed  to  a  terrible  fire  from 
above.  To  remain  there  would  have  been  to  be  annihilated, 
and  the  regiments  were  withdrawn,  but  only  to  charge  again 
at  a  fresh  point. 

Thrice  they  reached  the  walls,  thrice  they  had  to  fall  back, 
each  time  followed  by  the  Sikhs,  who  cut  the  wounded  to 
pieces.  The  second  division,  however,  managed  at  several 
points  to  effect  a  lodgment  within  the  intrenchments,  while 
Stacey's  and  Ashburnham's  brigade  maintained  themselves 
in  the  position  the  former  had  captured,  in  spite  of  the  des- 
perate efforts  of  the  Sikhs,  who  in  vast  numbers  swarmed  down 
upon  them  and  tried  to  recapture  it.  Thus  for  a  while  the 
battle  raged,  nor  were  the  British  able  to  advance  beyond  the 
points  wnere  they  had  gained  a  footing,  until  the  sappers  cut 
a  narrow  opening  through  the  works,  by  which  the  cavalry 
were  able  to  pass  in  single  file.  As  soon  as  the  3d  Dragoons 
had  entered  the  work  they  formed  up,  and  charging  along  in 
the  rear  of  the  intrenchment,  cut  down  the  Sikh  gunners  in 
their  batteries  and  captured  their  field-guns. 

As  their  fire  ceased  the  rest  of  the  infantry  poured  into  the 
works,  and  advancing  along  the  whole  line,  while  the  field 
batteries  which  had  entered  joined  their  fire  to  that  of  the 
musketry,  they  pressed  the  Sikhs  before  them  in  masses  across 
the  river.  The  bridge  was  an  excellent  one,  but  one  of  the 
Sikh  commanders  had  caused  two  of  the  boats  forming  it  to 
be  removed,  in  order  that  his  men,  seeing  there  was  no  mode 
of  retreat  should  defend  their  works  the  more  desperately. 
The  river  had  risen  during  the  night,  and  the  ford,  which 
had  the  day  before  been  but  breast-deep,  was  now  scarcely 
passable. 

The  scene  was  a  terrible  one;  the  crowded  masses  of  the 
enemy  threw  themselves  into  the  river,  and  strove  to  cross  by 
wading  and  swimming,  while  the  guns  of  the  British  horse- 


182  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

artillery,  which  had  come  up,  played  upon  them  unceasingly, 
and  the  infantry  poured  volleys  of  musketry  into  them,  all 
feeling  of  pity  being  for  the  time  dissipated  by  the  fury  with 
which  the  murder  of  our  wounded  by  the  Sikhs  during  the 
«arly  portion  of  the  fight  had  inspired  the  troops. 

Hundreds  of  the  enemy  fell  under  the  cannonade;  very 
many  hundreds  were  drowned.  The  battle  terminated  at  noon, 
the  infantry  having  been  engaged  without  intermission  for 
three  hours.  Sixty-seven  cannon  were  captured,  and  upwards 
of  two  hundred  camel  guns.  This  great  and  decisive  victory 
cost  those  engaged  in  it  dearly.  The  2gth  Foot  had  13  officers, 
8  sergeants,  and  167  men  killed  and  wounded;  the  ist  Euro- 
pean Light  Infantry,  12  officers,  12  sergeants,  and  173  men; 
the  3ist,  7  officers  and  147  men;  the  5oth,  12  officers  and  227 
men;  the  53d,  9  officers  and  in  men. 

These  were  the  heaviest  losses,  but  all  the  regiments  engaged 
suffered  severely,  as  the  total  loss  was  2383  in  killed  and 
wounded.  The  losses  among  the  staff  of  officers  were  small 
compared  to  those  which  they  had  suffered  at  Ferozeshah,  as 
it  was  not  necessary  at  Sobraon  for  the  governor-general  and 
commander- in-chief  to  expose  themselves  close  to  the  enemy's 
intrenchments  as  they  had  done  on  that  occasion.  General 
Sir  Robert  Dick,  who  had  gone  through  the  Peninsular  War, 
and  led  the  42d  Highlanders  at  Waterloo,  was  killed  as  he  led 
his  men  forward  against  the  Sikh  intrenchments;  and  Brigadier- 
generals  M'Laren  and  Taylor  also  fell.  The  loss  of  the  Sikhs 
was  never  known;  but  the  carnage  was,  in  proportion  to  the 
numbers  engaged,  enormous,  and  many  of  their  leading  sirdars 
were  among  the  slain. 

At  Ferozeshah,  the  greater  proportion  of  the  loss  among  the 
assailants  was  caused  by  the  grape-shot  from  the  enemy's  guns. 
At  Sobraon,  on  the  other  hand,  in  spite  of  the  number  and 
weight  of  the  enemy's  guns,  and  of  their  very  numerous  camel 
pieces,  it  was  the  musket  that  inflicted  the  great  proportion 
of  loss.  This  was  due,  in  the  first  place,  to  the  fact  that  a 


XX 

ALIWAL   AND   SOBRAON  18£ 

large  number  of  the  skilled  Sikh  gunners  had  fallen  in  the 
previous  battles,  and  that  the  artillery  fire  was  in  consequence 
very  wild  and  ill-directed.  In  the  next  place,  the  artillerymen 
were  unable  to  depress  their  pieces  sufficiently  to  play  upon 
the  British  when  they  reached  the  foot  of  the  intrenchments, 
while  the  infantry,  well  sheltered  behind  their  earthworks, 
were  able  to  keep  up  a  murderous  fire  upon  their  helpless  foes. 
These  facts  account  for  the  unusually  large  number  of  men 
wounded  in  proportion  to  the  killed. 

As  the  division  of  Sir  Harry  Smith  had  only  reached  the 
camp  two  days  before  the  battle,  Percy  remained  attached  to 
his  staff  and  rode  behind  him  in  the  engagement.  He  had 
wished  his  two  men  to  remain  in  camp,  but  they  resolutely 
declined  to  do  so. 

"  If  you  were  killed,  sahib,  how  could  we  face  the  colonel, 
and  tell  him  that  while  you  were  killed  we  were  cooking  our 
dinners  four  miles  away  ?  No,  sahib,  whatever  comes,  we  must 
ride  behind  the  general's  escort.  Had  we  not  seen  Feroze- 
shah,  we  should  say  that  success  to-morrow  is  impossible,  for 
the  intrenchments  there  were  but  dirt-heaps  in  comparison  to 
the  great  works  opposite.  We  can  see  with  our  own  eyes  how- 
big  and  high  they  are.  They  say  there  are  three  lines  of  para- 
pets for  the  infantry  to  fire  over,  besides  all  their  guns.  But 
now  we  know  that  nothing  is  impossible  to  the  white  troops, 
and  believe  that  somehow,  though  we  cannot  say  how,  they 
will  capture  it,  and  drive  the  Sikhs  across  the  river.  If  we 
live  through  it,  it  will  be  a  thing  to  talk  of  for  the  rest  of  our 
lives;  and  if  we  die,  you  will  tell  the  colonel,  sahib,  that  we 
did  our  duty.  He  told  us  to  watch  over  you,  and  though  no 
watching  can  turn  the  course  of  shot  or  bullet,  we  can  at  least 
be  near  to  carry  you  off  should  you  fall  wounded." 

However,  Percy  escaped  without  being  hit,  as  did  most  of 
the  staff,  though  he  did  his  share  in  carrying  orders  to  the 
officers  commanding  the  different  regiments  in  the  division. 
As  they  rode  back  from  the  field  after  the  engagement  was 
over  the  general  called  him  up  to  his  side. 


& 

,/Vv/V 

184  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

"I  ought  to  have  kept  you  out  of  the  battle,  lad,"  he  said 
kindly;  "but  I  did  not  like  to  baulk  you  again.  You  have 
done  very  well,  and  I  shall  mention  your  name  in  my  report 
as  among  the  members  of  my  staff  who  did  good  service." 

The  battle  of  Sobraon  completely  broke  the  power  of  the 
Sikhs.  In  these  and  the  preceding  fights  all  the  picked 
regiments  of  the  regular  infantry  had  been  destroyed  or  dis- 
persed, and  two  hundred  and  twenty  of  their  guns  captured. 
No  time  was  lost  by  the  commander-in-chief  in  following  up 
his  success.  A  bridge  of  boats  had  been  already  thrown  across 
the  river  half-way  between  Ferozepore  and  Sobraon,  and  mes- 
sages were  sent  to  Sir  John  Grey, 'who  commanded  a  force 
there,  and  to  Sir  John  Littler  at  Ferozepore,  to  cross  at  once. 
At  daybreak  next  morning  six  regiments  crossed  the  Sutlej 
from  Ferozepore,  while  Sir  John  Grey,  with  two  regiments  of 
cavalry,  three  of  infantry,  and  a  battery,  crossed  by  the  new 
bridge,  both  forces  thus  placing  themselves  on  the  road  by 
which  the  defeated  Sikhs  would  retire  upon  Lahore.  This 
speedy  movement  completed  their  discomfiture.  Cut  off  from 
the  capital,  and  deprived  of  the  leadership  of  all  the  principal 
sirdars,  they  dispersed  to  their  homes,  and  the  bridge  at 
Sobraon  having  been  repaired  on  the  day  following  the  battle, 
the  British  crossed  without  opposition. 

Ghoolab  Singh,  who  had  all  this  time  been  negotiating 
secretly  with  the  British,  while  promising  the  Sikhs  that  he 
was  on  the  eve  of  advancing  to  join  them  with  his  whole  force, 
now  endeavoured  to  figure  as  mediator,  and  came  secretly  into 
the  British  camp  with  the  object  of  persuading  the  governor- 
general  to  abstain  from  making  an  advance  against  Lahore. 
Sir  Henry  Hardinge  refused  to  receive  him,  and  sent  a  mes- 
sage to  him  by  his  political  officers  that  terms  of  peace  would 
be  dictated  at  the  capital.  The  crafty  sirdar  was  not  to  be 
defeated;  riding  back  to  Lahore,  he  took  the  young  maharajah 
and  rode  with  him  to  the  British  camp.  Sir  Henry  received 
the  young  prince  kindly,  but  was  not  to  be  diverted  from  his 


ALIWAL   AND    SOBRAON  185 

purpose  of  moving  forward  to  Lahore,  where  the  army  arrived 
without  a  shot  being  fired. 

Here  terms  of  peace  were  dictated  to  the  humble  Sikhs- 
The  expenses  of  the  war,  estimated  at  a  million  and  a  half, 
were  to  be  paid,  all  the  guns  taken  were  to  be  retained,  and 
all  others  that  had  been  used  against  us  during  the  war  were 
to  be  handed  over;  the  troops  were  to  be  disbanded,  and  the 
fertile  province  known  as  the  Jalindar  Doab,  situated  between 
the  Beas  and  Sutlej  rivers,  was  to  be  handed  over  to  the 
British.  Many  of  the  officers  considered  that  it  would  have 
been  better  to  have  annexed  the  whole  of  the  Punjaub,  but 
even  with  the  army  that  was  marching  from  Scinde  under 
Sir  Charles  Napier  the  force  was  insufficient  for  the  work. 
The  Sikhs  had  strongly  fortified  cities,  that  could  scarcely 
have  been  taken  without  a  regular  battering  train,  and  the  hot 
season  was  coming  on.  Besides,  although  the  army  trained 
with  so  much  care  by  Runjeet  Singh  had  been  broken  up  and 
scattered,  the  Sikh  nation  had  as  yet  taken  but  little  part  in 
the  struggle.  It  was,  however,  certain  that  they  would,  under 
their  great  chiefs,  fight  desperately  to  preserve  their  indepen- 
dence, and  the  whole  of  the  dispersed  soldiery  would  speedily 
be  reunited  under  the  banners  of  the  leaders. 

The  crafty  Ghoolab  Singh  gained  the  advantages  he  had 
hoped,  for  the  treasury  of  Lahore  was  empty,  and  with  the 
greatest  difficulty  half  a  million  was  raised  to  pay  the  first 
instalment  of  the  indemnity.  Ghoolab  Singh,  therefore,  out 
of  his  vast  resources  paid  another  half  million,  on  condition 
that  Cashmere  should  be  handed  over  to  him,  and  that  from 
being  merely  the  governor  of  that  province,  he  should  become 
its  independent  ruler.  The  price  paid  by  him  for  this  rich 
province  was  absurdly  inadequate,  but  so  far  as  the  British 
were  concerned  the  bargain  was  a  politic  one.  There  was 
little  doubt  that  a  second  war  would,  sooner  or  later,  have  to 
be  undertaken;  Ghoolab  Singh  could  put  a  very  large  army 
into  the  field,  and  by  making  him  ruler  of  Cashmere  his  inter- 


186  THROUGH  THE   SIKH  WAR 

ests  were  at  once  separated  from  those  of  the  Sikhs,  and  his 
neutrality,  if  not  his  active  alliance,  ,were  secured  in  any  future 
struggle.  It  was  arranged  that  a  British  force  should  remain 
in  Lahore  for  a  year,  nominally  to  insure  the  payment  of  the 
rest  of  the  indemnity,  but  really  to  maintain  the  authority  of 
the  maharanee  and  the  boy  maharajah,  who  were  in  no  way 
responsible  for  the  war  against  us,  and  who  doubtless  would 
have  been  overthrown  by  some  ambitious  sirdar,  aided  by  the 
disbanded  troops,  had  they  been  left  unsupported  by  British 
bayonets. 


CHAPTER  XI 

AN   AMBUSH 

MR.  FULLARTON  had  accompanied  the  army  to  Lahore, 
his  knowledge  of  the  country  and  people  being  so  valu- 
able that  the  governor-general  sent  over  on  the  evening  after 
the  Sikh  intrenchments  at  Sobraon  had  been  stormed,  to  request 
him  to  join  the  army  at  once,  as  Loodiana  had  for  the  present 
ceased  to  be  a  station  of  importance.  He  had,  as  soon  as  he 
joined  the  camp,  claimed  Percy  Groves'  services,  and  in  the 
negotiations  that  followed,  and  as  interpreter  between  the 
British  and  Sikh  authorities,  he  was  found  of  great  use,  espe- 
cially after  they  reached  Lahore,  where  many  of  the  Sikh  sir- 
dars, especially  those  whose  possessions  lay  in  the  Jalindar 
Doab,  considered  it  prudent  to  come  in  and  to  assume  an 
appearance  of  friendship  with  the  British. 

"Now,  Qroves,  what  are  your  wishes  as  to  entering  the 
service?"  Mr.  Fullarton  said  to  him  one  day,  when  the  vari- 
ous court  ceremonials  were  over,  and  preparations  were  begin- 
ning for  the  withdrawal  of  the  main  body  of  the  army.  "  The 
governor-general  mentioned  your  name  to  me  to-day,  and  said 
that  you  had  rendered  very  valuable  services  during  the  cam- 
paign. Mr.  Broadfoot  had  reported  most  favourably  of  you; 
you  had  acted  as  aide-de-camp  to  the  commander-in-chief  at 
Ferozeshah  and  to  Sir  Harry  Smith  at  Sobraon;  the  latter  had 
mentioned  you  in  his  report,  as  Sir  Hugh  Gough  and  himself 

187 


V 
188  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

had  both  observed  your  coolness  and  readiness  to  carry  mes- 
sages under  the  heaviest  fire  at  Ferozeshah;  and  that  since 
then  your  services  as  interpreter  have  been  very  valuable. 

"  He  said  that  you  had  earned  an  appointment,  and  that  he 
should  be  glad  to  write  to  the  Board  of  Directors  to  request 
one  for  you,  but  that  he  feared  the  board  would  consider  you 
too  young.  He  said,  however,  if  you  strongly  desired  to  enter 
the  service  at  once,  he  would  put  the  matter  in  such  a  light 
that  they  could  hardly  refuse;  for  as  you  had  been  doing  man's 
work  throughout  this  campaign,  you  could  do  it  during  peace 
time.  I  think  his  own  opinion  was  that  it  would  be  better 
for  you  to  wait  for  another  two  or  three  years,  for  that,  if  you 
received  an  appointment  now,  you  might  be  sent  down  to  an 
office  in  Calcutta.  You  see  that  at  your  age  you  could  hardly 
occupy  a  post  that  would  not  only  place  you  in  communication 
with  native  chiefs,  as  the  British  representative,  but  might 
place  you  in  a  position  where,  as  political  officer,  you  might 
have  to  requisition  the  assistance  of  troops  and  of  officers  old 
enough  to  be  your  father." 

"I  quite  think  so,"  Percy  said,  "and  would  much  rather  not 
enter  the  service  for  another  three  years,  sir;  even  then  I  shall 
only  be  nineteen." 

"That  is  about  the  right  age  to  enter,"  Mr.  Fullarton  said, 
"and  you  will  have  great  advantages  over  other  young  fellows 
just  out.  There  would  be  your  record  in  your  favour,  and  your 
knowledge  of  the  language  and  people,  and  you  would  be 
certain  to  obtain  an  appointment  in  this  province  such  as  a 
man  direct  from  England  could  hardly  hope  for  until  after  at 
least  ten  years'  service.  I  think  if  I  were  you,  I  should  turn 
my  attention  for  the  next  two  years  to  acquiring  as  thorough  a 
knowledge  of  the  Pathan  language  as  you  now  have  of  Punjaubi. 
When  we  have  annexed  the  Punjaub,  which  is  a  question  of  a 
few  years,  we  shall  be  in  direct  contact  with  the  hill  tribes, 
who  are  nominally  subject  to  Afghanistan,  but  are  practically 
independent,  and  if  you  happened  to  be  stationed  in  any  of 


AN   AMBUSH 


the  northern  districts  you  would  find  the  knowledge  of  that 
language  invaluable.  You  have  evidently  a  knack  of  picking 
up  languages,  and  your  knowledge  of  Punjaubi  will,  of  course, 
help  you  considerably  in  learning  Pathan." 

As  Percy  was  anxious,  now  that  everything  was  settled,  to 
return  as  speedily  as  possible  to  his  uncle's,  he  at  once  wrote 
a  formal  request  that  his  services  as  a  volunteer  might  be 
dispensed  with. 

The  next  day  Mr.  Fullarton  said  to  him  :  "  I  informed  Sir 
Henry  Hardinge  yesterday  evening  that  you  had  sent  in  your 
resignation,  and  he  requests  me  to  bring  you  to  him  this  morn- 
ing that  he  might  say  good-bye  to  you,  and  thank  you  for  your 
services." 

The  commander-in-chief  was  with  the  governor-general  when 
Mr.  Fullarton  called  at  the  palace,  where  he  had  taken  up  his 
quarters,  but  on  his  name  being  taken  in  he  was  requested  to 
enter  at  once,  which  he  did  with  Percy. 

"I  should  have  been  sorry  had  you  gone  without  saying 
good-bye  to  me,  Mr.  Groves,"  Sir  Henry  said.  "Both  the 
commander-in-chief  and  myself  have  noted  your  conduct  very 
favourably,  and  reports  to  the  same  effect  have  been  made  by 
Mr.  Broadfoot  and  Sir  Harry  Smith.  I  think  you  are  wise  to 
decide  to  wait  another  three  years  before  entering  the  service. 
I  shall  write  to  the  Board  of  Directors  requesting  them  to 
appoint  you  to  their  civil  service  at  once.  But  I  shall  ask 
them  to  date  the  appointment  three  years  on,  and  at  the  same 
time  to  send  instructions  to  the  officer  who  will  remain  as 
Resident  here  to  the  effect  that  should  there  be  any  signs  of 
fresh  trouble  before  that  time,  he  can  at  once  ante-date  the 
appointment  and  employ  you  in  any  way  in  which  your  knowl- 
edge of  the  country  and  language,  and  your  zeal  and  activity, 
can  be  utilized.  Should  I  still  be  in  India,  I  shall  make  it  a 
point  to  see  that  you  have  an  appointment  in  this  province; 
and  should  I  return  to  England  before  that  time,  your  name 
will  be  placed  in  the  list  I  leave  behind  for  my  successor  of 


190  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

promising  and  intelligent  officers.  Sir  Hugh  Gough  will  also, 
he  tells  me,  keep  an  eye  on  your  interests,  and  doubtless  you 
will  receive  a  notification  from  the  Court  in  due  time  as  to 
your  appointment.  You  will  do  well,  after  you  receive  it,  to 
write  to  the  Resident  here,  telling  him  that  although  you  do 
not  wish  for  employment  until  the  date  of  your  appointment, 
your  services  are  at  his  disposal  should  they  be  required.  I 
have  no  doubt  Mr.  Fullarton  will,  before  leaving,  speak  to  him 
personally  on  the  matter." 

The  commander-in-chief  added  a  few  words,  and  Percy  on 
returning  to  the  house  began  preparations  for  his  departure. 

"We  shall  have  to  be  careful  as  we  ride  back,  sahib,"  Bhop 
Lai  said.  "Things  are  quiet  enough  about  here,  but  from 
what  I  learn  the  country  is  overrun  with  disbanded  soldiers. 
They  have  gone  back  for  the  most  part  to  their  own  villages; 
but  what  will  they  do  there?  They  have  lived  an  idle  life  for 
years,  and  quite  considered  themselves  masters  of  the  country. 
They  will  never  set  to  at  steady  work  to  plough  the  fields,  they 
will  soon  tire  out  their  friends,  and  then  they  will  wander  away 
and  gather  in  bands,  and  become  dacoits.  I  hear  in  the 
bazaar  that  the  country  is  everywhere  unsafe  for  travel;  that 
merchants  dare  not  send  their  goods  except  in  strong  parties 
guarded  by  a  force  of  disbanded  soldiers  they  pay  to  act  as 
guards.  The  peasants  are  robbed  and  plundered,  and  things 
are  even  worse  than  they  were  before  the  war  began.  After 
getting  through  the  battles  without  so  much  as  a  scratch,  it 
would  be  unfortunate,  indeed,  should  ill  befall  us  now  that  the 
war  is  all  over." 

"There  is  one  thing,  Bhop  Lai.  We  shall  have  no  dangers 
except  from  an  accidental  encounter  with  robbers.  Now  that 
Ghoolab  Singh  is  ruler  of  Cashmere,  he  will  have  too  many 
other  matters  to  think  of  to  trouble  further  about  my  imcle  and 
his  little  district." 

"Nothing  is  too  small,  as  nothing  is  too  large,  sahib," 
Akram  Chunder  said,  "for  the  greed  of  Ghoolab  Singh.  He 


AN   AMBUSH  191 

may  now  have  a  kingdom,  but  that  will  not  prevent  him  from 
fleecing  a  trader  if  he  has  an  opportunity.  See  how  he  has 
filled  his  coffers  at  the  expense  of  the  people.  Has  he  not 
paid  half  a  crore  of  rupees  to  your  people  for  Cashmere,  and 
I  doubt  not  he  would  have  paid  three  times  as  much  if  it  had 
been  needed.  There  are  many  other  sirdars  could  have  paid 
the  half  crore,  but  they  say  that  Ghoolab  could  buy  up  any 
four  of  them.  It  is  true  there  is  no  fear  that  he  will  now  try 
to  seize  the  colonel  sahib's  government  by  force,  at  least  until 
fresh  troubles  begin;  but  if  he  can  have  him  quietly  removed 
you  may  be  sure  he  will  do  so,  as  he  could  then  easily  enough 
get  the  maharanee  and  the  Lahore  durbar  to  confirm  the  former 
appointment  of  his  son  as  governor. 

"The  colonel  need  no  longer  fear  force,  but  he  must  be 
more  than  ever  on  his  guard  against  treachery.  Still,  sahib, 
I  agree  with  you  that  just  at  present  Ghoolab  must  have  too 
many  things  to  think  of  to  be  giving  attention  to  your  matter, 
and  that  we  can  travel  without  fear  of  him.  As  for  the  bud- 
mashes,  we  shall  have  to  be  careful  of  them,  as  my  comrade 
says;  and  we  must  mind  that  no  one  suspects  for  a  moment 
that  you  are  English ;  for  although  the  people  here  are  respect- 
ful enough,  you  may  be  sure  that  outside  the  range  of  your 
guns  there  is  not  a  Sikh,  save  perhaps  the  humblest  cultivators, 
who  is  not  full  of  rage  and  hatred  against  the  English.  Have 
you  not  defeated  them  in  four  battles,  humbled  their  national 
pride,  and  taken  their  richest  province?  To  be  suspected  of 
Toeing  an  Englishman  would  be  your  death-warrant  in  the 
smallest  village  of  the  Punjaub.  The  sahib  would  do  well 
to-morrow  not  to  wear  his  dress  of  a  sirdar,  but  to  dress  as  he 
did  when  we  visited  the  camp  of  Tej  Singh.  Then,  if  we  are 
questioned,  it  is  we  who  will  do  the  talking;  while,  if  you  are 
dressed  as  a  chief,  it  is  to  you  the  questions  will  be  put. 
Besides,  most  of  the  sirdars  are  known  by  name,  at  least  to 
the  bulk  of  the  people,  and  it  would  be  difficult  for  you  to 
reply  to  close  questioning;  whereas,  passing  as  disbanded 


192  THROUGH  THE   SIKH  WAR 

soldiers,  who  are  tired  of  doing  nothing  in  our  native  village, 
and  are  going  north  to  take  service  with  Ghoolab  Singh,  our 
story  is  simple  and  natural  enough." 

"  But  Ghoolab  himself  cannot  be  popular  in  the  country  at 
present,"  Percy  said;  "  they  must  all  see  now  that  he  has  been 
playing  a  double  part;  and  that  he  has,  moreover,  wrenched 
from  the  Punjaub  a  territory  as  valuable  as  that  which  we  took 
after  such  hard  fighting." 

"That  is  so,  but  Ghoolab  is  everywhere  feared;  no  man 
offends  him  or  his  without  paying  for  it;  and  besides,  they 
may  hope  that  if  there  is  again  trouble,  Ghoolab  may  join 
them  against  the  British.  They  may  not  like  him,  but  there 
must  be  many  disbanded  soldiers  who  have  been  going  to  take 
service  under  him,  and  the  people  will  bear  us  no  ill-will  for 
that:  it  is  the  most  likely  story  for  us  to  tell,  and  the  one  that 
will  be  least  questioned." 

"  I  think  you  are  right,  Akram  Chunder;  at  any  rate  I  will 
ride  to-morrow  dressed  as  you  are." 

The  next  morning  they  started  from  Lahore  at  daybreak,  and 
rode  north.  They  had  agreed  to  travel  by  the  main  road,  as 
they  would  there  attract  no  attention;  whereas  passing  through 
villages  on  unfrequented  roads,  their  passage  would  excite 
comment.  After  riding  for  fifteen  miles  they  came  upon  a 
party  of  ten  men,  evidently  disbanded  soldiers,  seated  in  the 
shade  of  a  clump  of  trees  by  the  roadside,  cooking  their 
breakfast. 

"Better  stop  and  talk  with  them,"  Bhop  Lai  said;  "it  will 
look  strange  if  we  ride  on." 

They  reined  in  their  horses,  and  Bhop  Lai  gave  the  usual 
salutation.  After  the  customary  return  of  greetings,  one  of 
the  men  said,  "Will  you  not  dismount  and  share  our  break- 
fast?" 

"We  took  food  before  we  started  from  Lahore,"  Bhop  Lai 
replied. 

"Ah,  you  came  from  Lahore:  what  is  the  last  news  there?" 


AN   AMBUSH  193 

"There  is  nothing  new,  everything  is  quiet,  and  they  say 
that  most  of  the  English  will  soon  march  away." 

"  We  will  make  short  work  of  the  maharanee  and  her  son  as 
soon  as  they  go,"  the  man  said  savagely.  "They  are  but 
puppets  now  in  the  hands  of  the  English,  and  have  signed 
away  the  best  doab  in  the  Punjaub  so  as  to  buy  protection  for 
Dhuleep  Singh.  He  is  no  longer  a  Sikh  prince,  and  we  will 
speedily  place  one  of  our  own  sirdars  on  the  throne." 

"That  is  what  we  all  mean  to  do,"  Bhop  Lai  agreed;  "we 
want  no  boy  as  our  ruler  now,  but  a  sirdar  who  can  lead  us  to 
battle.  It  will  be  different  next  time;  last  time  we  despised 
the  English,  and  so  they  beat  us;  next  time  it  will  be  they 
who  will  make  too  sure,  and  we  shall  beat  them." 

"Where  are  you  going?  " 

"We  are  thinking  of  taking  service  under  Ghoolab  Singh." 

"The  old  fox  is  a  traitor,"  the  man  said  angrily,  while  a 
general  murmur  broke  from  his  comrades. 

"There  is  no  doubt  that  he  played  us  false,"  Bhop  Lai 
agreed;  "but  now  that  he  is  master  of  Cashmere  he  may  think 
it  his  interest  to  go  with  us  next  time;  and  besides,  at  present 
his  gold  is  as  good  as  another's,  and  none  of  the  other  sirdars 
will  increase  their  forces  until  the  English  have  retired;  so 
there  is  just  the  choice  of  taking  service  with  Ghoolab  or  of 
starving." 

"There  is  no  occasion  to  starve  for  those  who  have  got 
arms,"  the  man  said;  "and  we  find  it  easier  to  help  ourselves 
and  to  be  our  own  masters  than  to  serve  anyone  else.  You 
had  better  join  us,  comrades." 

"Thank  you;  we  have  thought  it  over,  you  may  be  sure; 
but  we  have  had  enough  of  marching  about  and  sleeping  in 
the  air  for  the  present,  and  we  are  likely  at  any  rate  to  sleep 
and  eat  our  meals  in  peace  with  Ghoolab.  There  is  little 
chance  of  any  rising  for  a  long  time  yet,  and  till  then,  at  any 
rate,  there  will  be  peace  in  Cashmere.  When  fighting  begins 
again  here,  we  have  made  up  our  minds  to  come  back,  if  we 


104  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

find  that  Ghoolab  has  forgotten  that  he  is  a  Sikh.  And  now, 
with  your  permission,  we  will  be  riding  on,"  and  Bhop  Lai 
turned  his  horse,  and  with  his  companions  trotted  off. 

"We  got  through  that  well  enough,"  Percy  remarked. 

"They  did  not  think  we  were  worth  robbing,  sahib;  and  as 
we  are  well  armed,  it  would  not  have  been  worth  their  while  to 
meddle  with  us.  Besides,  you  see  their  horses  are  on  the 
other  side  of  the  grove,  and  they  must  have  noticed  that  we 
were  well  mounted,  and  could  have  got  a  long  start  before 
they  were  off.  It  is  as  likely  as  not  that  they  did  not  believe 
my  story,  but  thought  we  were  on  our  way  to  join  some  other 
band  we  knew  of.  I  have  no  fear  of  these  fellows  if  we  meet 
them  openly  in  the  daytime.  The  danger  will  be  if  we  come 
upon  them  suddenly,  and  they  attack  us  before  they  see  what 
we  are." 

In  the  course  of  the  day  they  passed  several  parties  of  threes 
and  fours,  sometimes  mounted  and  sometimes  on  foot;  but 
they  did  not  draw  rein,  and  contented  themselves  with  the 
exchange  of  passing  salutations.  Only  once  they  came  upon 
a  large  party.  It  consisted  of  twenty  carts  laden  with  mer- 
chandise, and  escorted  by  some  thirty  men  armed  to  the  teeth. 

"You  see  they  get  employment  both  ways,  sahib,"  Akram 
Chunder  remarked ;  "  some  of  them  make  money  by  turning 
robbers,  others  make  money  by  selling  their  services  to  mer- 
chants to  protect  their  goods  from  robbers.  No  doubt  those 
carts  are  on  their  way  down  from  Serinagur  and  Jummoo,  and 
are  laden  with  shawls  and  embroidery,  and  such  other  goods  as 
the  merchants  think  the  English  officers  at  Lahore  will  be  glad 
to  buy  to  send  home  to  their  friends." 

"  I  should  think  they  will  make  a  good  venture,"  Percy  said, 
"  for  the  bazaars  at  Lahore  are  very  poorly  stocked.  Trade 
has  been  bad  there  for  a  long  time,  owing  to  the  troubles  and 
disturbances,  and  I  hear  that  many  of  the  traders  who  had 
remained  fled  when  the  news  came  of  the  defeat  at  Sobraon, 
fearing  that  the  English  army  would  act  as  the  Sikhs  would 


AN   AMBUSH  195 

have  done  under  the  circumstances,  and  would  march  straight 
to  Lahore  and  plunder  the  city.  What  part  of  Cashmere  do 
you  come  from,  Akram?" 

"  From  the  hills  ftfty  miles  north  of  Serinagur.  Cashmere 
has  no  authority  there,  and  the  hill  tribes  have  their  wars  with 
each  other  without  interference.  I  was  fifteen  when  our  village 
was  attacked  and  destroyed  by  a  tribe  we  had  raided  a  few 
months  before.  Most  of  the  people  were  killed,  but  I  was 
fleet-footed  and  got  away.  I  worked  for  a  time  at  Serinagur, 
but  got  tired  of  carrying  burdens  from  morning  to  night,  so  I 
went  on  to  Jummoo,  and  stopped  there  for  three  or  four  years ; 
and  then,  when  I  was  about  one-and-twenty,  went  down  to 
Lahore,  and  finding  it  hard  work  to  get  a  living  in  any  other 
way,  I  took  service  in  Runjeet  Singh's  army,  and  had  the  good 
luck  to  enlist  in  the  regiment  of  my  lord  your  uncle,  and  there 
I  have  remained  ever  since.  It  was  a  lucky  day  when  I  chose 
his  regiment,  and  I  did  so  because  I  heard  two  soldiers  in  the 
street  speak  well  of  him.  Had  I  been  in  one  of  the  others,  I 
should  most  likely  have  fallen  at  Ferozeshah  or  Sobraon,  even 
if  I  hadn't  been  killed  before." 

That  night  they  slept  at  a  khan  in  the  town.  There  were 
but  few  other  guests,  and  the  keeper  of  the  place  bitterly 
bemoaned  the  change  of  times. 

"In  the  days  of  Runjeet,"  he  said,  "there  were  seldom  less 
than  a  hundred  travellers  stopping  here  nightly;  after  his  death 
the  number  fell  to  about  twenty,  for  who  would  go  to  Lahore 
if  he  could  help  it,  when,  for  aught  he  knew,  he  might  find 
fighting  going  on  in  the  streets,  or  the  city  being  sacked  when 
he  arrived  there  ?  Now  it  is  rare  for  more  than  three  or  four 
to  pass  the  night  here;  no  one  will  travel  for  trade  or  for 
pleasure;  no  one  will  go  to  Lahore  as  long  as  the  English  are 
there.  Sometimes,  it  is  true,  a  caravan  comes  down,  such  as 
that  which  stayed  here  last  night;  but  there  are  few  of  these, 
and  were  it  not  for  the  passage  of  those  who,  like  yourselves, 
are  on  their  way  to  their  homes,  or  to  take  service  in  Cashmere, 


196  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

I  might  as  well  close  and  lock  the  gates,  and  go  away  to  earn 
my  bread  at  some  other  business.  The  country  is  being  ruined 
fast.  There  are  even  those  who  say  that  it  would  be  better  the 
English  should  come  and  be  our  masters;  there  would  be  peace 
then,  and  they  would  soon  put  a  stop  to  robbery  and  dacoitism, 
as  they  have  done  wherever  they  have  established  their  rule, 
and  the  peasants  would  be  able  to  plough  their  fields,  and  the 
traders  to  carry  on  their  business  without  fear  of  any  man  so 
long  as  they  paid  their  taxes  and  kept  the  law.  I  do  not  say 
that  those  are  my  opinions,"  he  added  hastily,  "but  I  know 
that  such  is  the  talk  among  the  peasants,  who  have  had,  it  must 
be  owned,  a  rough  time  since  Runjeet  Singh  died.  Heavily 
taxed  they  were  in  his  time,  but  beyond  that  they  had  nought 
to  complain  of;  but  of  late,  what  with  one  trouble  and  another, 
their  lot  has  been  hard." 

"There  is  no  doubt  about  that,"  Bhop  Lai  agreed  heartily. 
"  I  have  been  a  soldier,  but  I  have  been  a  peasant  too,  and 
know  where  the  shoe  pinches.  Perhaps  things  will  be  better 
now." 

The  man  shrugged  his  shoulders.  "  I  see  not  how  this  is  to 
be,"  he  said;  "the  Lahore  durbar  is  under  the  protection  of 
foreigners,  and  no  one  heeds  it,  as  it  has  no  power  save  in  the 
city.  Better  a  thousand  times  a  prince  who  can  make  himself 
obeyed,  even  were  it  Ghoolab  Singh,  or  else  a  strong  foreign 
rule.  I  would  rather  have  a  native  prince,  but  far  better  than 
the  nominal  rule  of  a  boy,  protected  by  foreign  bayonets, 
would  be  the  rule  of  the  foreigners  themselves,  for  they,  at 
least,  can  make  the  law  respected,  punish  ill-doers,  and  preserve 
peace  and  order." 

"  I  fancy  there  are  a  great  many  who  think  as  you  do,"  Bhop 
Lai  said;  "but  these  for  the  most  part  keep  their  thoughts  to 
themselves.  Well,  we  shall  see  what  we  shall  see.  Things 
will  never  go  on  long  as  they  are  at  present;  and,  as  you  say, 
the  Punjaub  will  either  be  ruled  by  a  strong  native  prince,  or 
it  will,  like  Scinde,  become  a  possession  of  the  English.  I 


AX    AMBUSH  .  197 

have  had  enough  of  fighting,  and  mean  to  remain  quiet  until 
one  or  other  of  these  things  comes  about." 

"There  are  many  like  you;  but  some  of  the  soldiers  who 
come  through  say  they  would  like  to  fight  the  English  again." 

"Then  take  my  word  for  it,"  a  soldier  sitting  by  said,  "the 
men  who  said  that  were  not  among  those  who  fought  on  the 
Sutlej.  There  were  brave  men  there,  and  plenty  of  them,  but 
I  do  not  believe  one  of  those  that  fought  there  will  ever  wish 
to  fight  the  white  troops  again.  There  was  no  withstanding 
them.  They  came  on  as  if  they  minded  the  rain  of  iron  and 
lead  no  more  than  if  it  had  been  a  thunder-shower.  It  was 
that  which  beat  us;  we  were  told  by  our  chiefs  that  it  was 
impossible,  absolutely  impossible,  for  men  to  force  their  way 
into  our  lines,  and  when  we  saw  them  do  it,  we  said  to  our- 
selves it  is  hopeless  to  fight  against  such  men :  and  we  who, 
under  Runjeet,  have  won  victory  after  victory,  and  that  against 
stout  fighters  like  the  Afghans,  lost  heart  for  the  first  time  in 
our  lives,  when  we  felt  that  we,  though  two  to  one,  were  no 
match  for  these  terrible  soldiers." 

"  Is  it  true,"  the  keeper  of  the  khan  asked,  "  as  all  have  told 
me,  that  they  neither  plunder  nor  rob;  and  though  really 
masters  of  Lahore,  the  English  go  about  quietly,  ill-treating 
none?" 

"It  is  quite  true;  they  have  discipline;  brave  as  these  men 
are,  they  are  quiet  and  orderly,  as  our  troops  never  were  even 
in  the  days  when  Runjeet  was  strong  and  firm.  Not  a  man 
has  been  robbed,  nor  a  woman  insulted,  since  they  crossed  the 
Sutlej.  They  are  our  enemies,  but  they  are  a  great  people." 

"If  you  have  aught  to  lose,  gentlemen,"  the  other  said,  "be 
careful  how  you  ride  to-morrow;  scarce  one  has  arrived  from 
the  north  for  the  last  week  who  does  not  complain  bitterly  of 
being  robbed  on  the  way.  Some  were  wounded  sorely,  having 
ventured  on  resistance.  They  say  there  are  as  many  as  two 
hundred  disbanded  soldiers  lurking  among  the  woods  and 
bushes  between  this  and  the  next  town.  The  Sirdar  Lai  Miz- 


198  THROUGH    THE    SIKH    WAR 

rah,  moved  by  the  complaints  of  the  country  people,  cleared 
the  road  of  them  a  few  days  since,  breaking  up  their  parties, 
and  killing  many;  therefore,  at  present  they  are  more  cautious. 
That  is  how  the  convoy  got  through  safely  yesterday.  I  should 
advise  you,  therefore,  to  travel  by  country  roads,  though  even 
these  are  not  safe,  for  the  robbers,  finding  that  people  have 
deserted  the  main  road  and  have  taken  to  these  paths,  have 
beset  them  also." 

"We  have  nothing  to  lose  but  our  lives,"  Bhop  Lai  said, 
"but  as  these  are  somewhat  precious  to  us,  we  will  take  all  the 
care  we  can  to  avoid  these  gentry  you  speak  of." 

After  a  consultation  with  Percy,  it  was  agreed  that,  as  time 
was  no  particular  object,  they  would  strike  off  at  once  to  the 
west,  travel  for  a  day  in  that  direction,  and  then  make  north, 
thereby  getting  well  out  of  the  line  followed  by  travellers  from 
Lahore. 

"After  having  been  through  three  battles,"  Percy  said,  "it 
would  be  folly  to  risk  getting  our  throats  cut  merely  for  the 
sake  of  saving  a  day's  journey." 

Accordingly  the  next  morning  they  took  this  route.  They 
passed  several  villages  in  the  course  of  the  day;  as  they  were 
seen  approaching,  men  and  women  ran  into  their  houses  and 
closed  the  doors,  and  not  a  soul  was  to  be  seen  in  the  streets 
as  they  passed  through. 

"We  need  not  have  been  afraid  of  being  questioned,"  Percy 
said;  "it  is  evident  that  the  whole  population  of  the  country 
is  scared  by  the  exactions  of  these  disbanded  soldiers,  and  that 
they  are  only  too  glad  to  see  us  pass  by  without  interfering 
with  them.  It  would  have  been  well  for  the  country  if  the 
Sutlej  had  risen  another  foot  on  the  day  of  the  storming  of 
Sobraon,  it  would  have  relieved  the  country  of  some  thousands 
more  of  these  plunderers." 

They  met  with  no  adventure  whatever  until  they  arrived 
within  a  few  miles  of  the  fortress.  Then,  as  they  were  riding 
along  through  a  wood,  a  party  of  men  on  foot  suddenly  sprang 


1'ERCY    AND    HIS    FOLLOWERS    ARE    ATTACKED    UY    DACOITS,. 


AN   AMBUSH  199 

out  from  among  the  trees.  Before  they  had  time  to  draw  their 
swords  Akram  Chunder  and  Percy  were  struck  from  their  horses. 
Bhop  Lai,  who  happened  to  be  a  horse's  length  behind  his 
comrades,  snatched  his  pistol  from  his  belt,  and  shot  two  of 
the  assailants;  then  a  ball  from  a  matchlock  struck  him,  and 
he  fell  from  his  horse.  As  he  lay  he  was  gashed  with  a  dozen 
severe  wounds,  and  was  speedily  stripped  of  his  arms  and 
clothes;  the  party  then  gathered  round  the  two  prisoners. 

"I  know  this  man,"  one  of  them  said,  stooping  over  Akram 
Chunder;  "he  is  one  of  the  men  at  the  white  colonel's  for- 
tress. I  know  him  because  he  was  servant  to  one  of  the 
officers,  and  when  I  went  in  there  with  ghee,  he  bought  some 
of  me  and  came  back  accusing  me  of  having  sold  him  false 
weight.  He  fetched  his  master,  who  examined  my  scales,  and 
found  that  somehow  a  bit  of  lead  had  got  stuck  under  one  of 
them,  and  the  villain  had  me  flogged,  and  told  me  if  ever  I 
entered  the  place  again  he  would  cut  off  my  ears.  I  swore  I 
would  pay  this  fellow  out  some  day,  and  having  changed  my 
appearance  somewhat  went  back  some  time  ago  to  find  him 
and  pay  him  with  a  knife  stab  if  I  got  a  chance,  but  I  heard 
from  a  friend  I  had  there  that  he  had  gone  away;  he  had 
ridden  off  with  a  party  that  went  with  the  colonels'  nephew. 
The  rest  had  returned  all  but  this  fellow  and  another;  and  as 
it  was  just  when  the  war  broke  out,  it  was  supposed  they  had 
gone  with  the  young  sahib  to  act  as  his  servants,  for  both  were 
accustomed  to  that  sort  of  work." 

"Well,  there  are  three  of  them  here,"  the  other  said; 
"  maybe  it  is  a  lucky  day  for  us,  and  that  the  third  of  them  is 
the  white  lad." 

"Sure  enough  it's  the  governor's  nephew,"  one  of  the  men 
exclaimed  as  he  walked  across  to  Percy,  who  was  lying  a  little 
apart.  "I  have  seen  him  a  dozen  times  at  the  fortress." 

"Then  this  is  a  fortunate  day  for  us  indeed,"  the  leader  of 
the  party  exclaimed;  "put  them  both  on  their  horses  again 
and  mount  without  delay;  we  will  settle  what  to  do  with  them 


200  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

afterwards.  We  have  two  strings  to  our  bow:  it  is  certain 
that  we  can  get  a  handsome  ransom  from  the  colonel,  but  I 
fancy  Ghoolab  Singh  would  give  us  still  more.  You  remember 
the  talk  there  was  of  a  party  of  his  men  lying  in  ambush  here 
to  capture  this  lad  as  he  came  up  two  years  ago;  and  everyone 
knows  it  was  his  doing  that  the  place  was  besieged  three  months 
since." 

"Would  it  not  be  as  well  to  give  this  fellow  a  stab  and  leave 
him  here?"  the  man  who  had  recognized  Akram  Chunder 
asked. 

"Not  at  all,"  the  leader  said  harshly;  "at  any  rate  not  at 
present.  We  may  find  him  useful  if  we  want  to  send  a  mes- 
senger in  to  the  white  colonel.  Besides,  if  we  ransom  the  boy 
to  his  uncle  it  is  no  use  setting  him  against  us  by  killing  his 
servant.  Even  if  the  colonel  agreed  to  leave  us  unmolested, 
some  of  his  men  might  take  the  matter  up  and  make  the  coun- 
try too  hot  for  us.  I  am  always  against  killing  unless  there  is 
something  to  be  gained  by  it,  and  I  see  nothing  to  be  gained 
by  this  fellow's  death." 

Percy  had  been  stunned  by  the  blow  from  the  heavy  cudgel 
that  struck  him  off  his  horse,  but  he  heard  the  latter  part  of 
the  conversation.  He  knew  that  resistance  would  be  fatal,  and 
submitted  quietly  to  be  placed  on  his  horse.  His  hands  were 
first  bound  in  front  of  him,  the  reins  were  then  cut  and  two 
horsemen,  one  on  either  side  of  him,  took  the  ends.  Akram 
Chunder  was  similarly  treated,  and,  surrounded  by  the  whole 
party,  numbering  about  twenty,  they  rode  off.  By  their  dress 
and  attire  he  judged  the  men  into  whose  hands  they  had  fallen 
were  not  discharged  soldiers  but  regular  dacoits,  and  when  he 
heard  one  of  them  address  the  leader  by  the  name  of  Goolam 
Tej,  he  recognized  it  as  that  of  a  dacoit  who  had  for  years 
been  a  scourge  to  that  part  of  the  country,  although  he  had 
seldom  ventured  to  molest  the  villages  in  the  colonel's  district, 
knowing  how  speedy  and  relentless  would  be  the  pursuit.  He 
had  heard  numberless  stories  of  the  atrocities  committed  by 


AN   AMBUSH  201 

this  band;  how  they  had  tortured  men  and  women  to  force 
them  to  reveal  the  hiding-places  of  their  money;  how  they  had 
slaughtered  not  only  those  who  ventured  to  offer  resistance, 
but  their  wives  and  families.  However,  he  had  no  fear  as  to 
his  own  safety;  there  was  nothing  to  be  made  by  killing  hin:, 
while  there  might  be  a  large  sum  to  be  obtained  as  a  ransom 
from  his  uncle  or  by  his  sale  to  Ghoolab  Singh. 

The  band  were  all  mounted  on  wiry  little  ponies,  and  for 
some  hours  they  rode  at  a  rapid  pace.  They  halted  in  a  wood 
at  the  foot  of  the  hills.  Here  the  leader,  upon  asking  the 
question  whether  any  of  them  had  ascertained  beyond  the 
possibility  of  doubt  that  the  man  they  had  left  behind  was 
dead,  was  furious  at  finding  that  none  of  them  had  done  so. 
The  men  who  had  stripped  him  declared  they  felt  quite  certain 
of  it :  "  He  had  half  a  dozen  wounds  any  one  of  which  must 
have  killed  him,"  one  of  them  said;  "and  that  being  so,  I  did 
not  think  of  putting  my  hand  on  his  heart  to  feel  if  it  beat. 
Make  yourself  easy,  Goolam  Tej,  the  fellow  is  dead  beyond  all 
doubt." 

"There  is  never  any  saying,"  his  leader  replied;  "some 
men  are  so  tough  that  they  get  over  wounds  which  should  have 
been  sufficient  to  kill  them  a  dozen  times.  It  is  always  well 
to  make  sure,  either  by  a  stroke  with  a  dagger  through  the 
heart,  or  by  cutting  off  the  head.  There  is  no  great  trouble 
about  either  job,  and  it  prevents  mistakes  occurring.  If  I 
determine  on  sending  to  Ghoolab  Singh  first,  I  don't  want 
the  colonel  to  know  what  has  happened  till  we  are  at  the  other 
end  of  the  country.  If  that  fellow  should  be  found  on  the 
road,  and  his  wounds  bound  up,  he  may  recover  so  far  as  to 
tell  them  what  has  happened,  and  then  we  shall  have  the  col- 
onel scouring  the  whole  country  with  his  force.  Besides,  he 
may  send  to  Lahore  and  lay  a  complaint  before  the  durbar, 
and  as  he  and  the  boy  are  English  they  would  get  up  a  hue 
and  cry  after  us  through  the  whole  of  the  Punjaub.  I  daresay 
the  man  is  dead,  still  there  ought  not  to  be  a  possibility  of  a 


202  THROUGH  THE  SIKH   WAR 

doubt  about  it,  and  I  blame  myself  as  much  as  I  do  you  for 
not  having  given  a  thought  to  the  matter." 

On  dismounting,  Percy's  legs  were  firmly  bound,  and  he  was 
laid  down  on  the  ground  at  a  short  distance  from  his  follower, 
a  dacoit  with  a  gun  and  sword  taking  his  seat  by  each  of  them, 
so  that  even  conversation  was  impossible.  The  next  morning 
they  started  up  the  hills,  and  after  some  hours'  riding  crossed 
the  crest,  and  then,  leaving  the  bridle-path  by  which  they  had 
travelled,  dismounted  and  led  their  horses  along  the  steep  face 
of  the  hill  until  they  reached  a  perpendicular  crag  standing 
out  from  it,  upon  the  summit  of  which  stood  a  castellated 
building.  A  long  shed  had  been  erected  upon  a  comparatively 
flat  piece  of  ground  among  the  trees  at  its  foot;  into  this  the 
dacoits  led  their  ponies,  and  then  mounted  a  path  a  few  inches 
wide  cut  in  the  rock,  and  leading  up  to  a  strong  door  which 
gave  access  to  the  building.  A  watchman  on  the  wall  had  seen 
them  coming,  and  as  they  entered  they  were  greeted  with  cries 
of  joy  by  a  number  of  women. 

Percy  saw  at  once  that  the  building  was  ancient,  but  that  it 
had  recently  been  roughly  repaired,  and  doubted  not  that  it 
was  a  deserted  fortalice  that  the  band  had  occupied  and  made 
their  head-quarters.  During  that  day's  ride  the  dacoits  had 
taken  the  precaution  of  bandaging  the  eyes  of  their  prisoners, 
and  only  unloosened  the  wraps  when,  on  nearing  the  place, 
the  ground  had  become  so  steep  and  difficult  that  it  was  nec- 
essary for  them  to  have  the  use  of  their  eyes.  The  prisoners 
were  taken  to  a  small  room  in  a  little  tower  at  one  of  the 
angles  of  the  building,  their  cords  were  then  unloosened,  and 
they  were  left  alone  together. 

"This  is  a  nice  fix  that  we  are  in,  Akram  Chunder,"  Percy 
said. 

"  It  is,  indeed,  sahib.  I  care  not  so  much  for  myself,  but  to 
think  that  you,  after  going  through  those  battles,  should  be 
seized  by  these  robbers  within  a  few  miles  of  home,  cuts  me 
to  the  heart." 


AN   AMBUSH 


203 


"I  am  awfully  sorry  for  Bhop  Lai,"  Percy  said.  "Do  you 
think  he  was  killed?  " 

"That  I  cannot  say,  not  having  seen  his  wounds,  but  if  they 
were  not  in  a  vital  place  he  may  live  through  them,  for  he  is 
as  hard  as  a  piece  of  iron,  and  was  not  given  to  drink.  Men 
who  drink  have  but  little  chance  of  making  a  good  recovery. 
He  would  have  the  sense,  I  know,  to  lie  still  and  sham  dead; 
but  I  hope  ere  this  he  may  have  carried  the  news  to  your  uncle. 
He  would  obtain  help  and  assistance  from  the  first  passer-by 
when  he  told  his  story,  for  there  is  not  a  peasant  in  the  district 
who  does  not  love  the  colonel." 


CHAPTER  XII 

A   PRISONER 

PERCY  went  to  the  window  and  looked  out.  There  were 
J-  three  of  these,  mere  arrow  slits,  and  from  each  of  them 
he  had  a  view  of  the  wood  stretching  away  down  the  hillside 
into  a  narrow  valley,  which  a  short  distance  down  took  a  turn 
and  the  hills  cut  off  further  view. 

"Where  are  we,  think  you,  Akram  Chunder?  " 
"  I  have  no  idea,  sahib,  beyond  the  fact  that  by  the  position 
of  the  sun  we  are  looking  eastward.  I  should  say  the  place 
where  we  halted  yesterday  was  some  thirty  miles  to  the  north- 
east of  the  fortress;  it  may  have  been  more,  but  it  certainly 
was  not  less,  or  I  would  have  known  the  country.  To-day  we 
were  mounting  all  the  time  till  the  last  hour,  and  then  I  could 
feel  that  we  descended  sharply.  I  should  say  that  we  were 
some  six  hours  on  horseback;  we  travelled  part  of  the  way  at 
a  trot,  but  more  often  walked,  so  at  five  miles  an  hour  we 
should  be  thirty  from  our  camp  of  last  night.  If  we  travelled 
straight  to  the  east  all  the  time  we  may  have  crossed  the  main 
crest  of  the  hills;  if  not,  we  may  be  anywhere  among  them,  for 
they  tied  the  bandages  so  carefully  over  my  eyes  that  I  could 
see  nothing,  not  even  the  road  under  the  horse's  feet." 

"It  would  not  have  helped  you  much  had  you  done  so," 
Percy  said  with  a  laugh;  "one  road  is  a  good  deal  like 
another." 

204 


A    PRISONER  205 

"The  shadows  would  have  shown  me  the  direction  in  which 
we  were  travelling,  sahib,  more  accurately  than  I  could  tell  by 
the  heat  of  the  sun." 

"  So  they  would,  Akram.  I  did  not  think  of  that.  At  any 
rate  we  may  take  it  that  we  are  in  some  very  out-of-the-way 
spot,  where  it  would  be  difficult  for  anyone  to  find  us  without 
a  guide." 

"That  is  so,  sahib.  I  can  see  nothing  but  trees,  and  no 
signs  of  human  handiwork.  This  place  could  not  be  seen  at 
a  great  distance,  for  it  does  not  rise  very  much  above  the  tops 
of  the  trees.  The  rock  was  about  thirty  feet  high  where  we 
mounted  it,  though  it  must  be  well-nigh  double  that  on  the 
lower  face.  The  building  itself  is  not  any  great  height; 
though  it  could  be  seen  well  enough  from  that  valley  down 
there,  it  could  not  be  made  out  from  above,  and  even  from 
the  hillside  was  scarcely  visible.  It  would  be  a  difficult  place 
to  capture  except  by  a  force  provided  with  cannon,  for  it  occu- 
pies the  whole  of  the  top  of  this  crag,  and,  as  far  as  I  could 
see,  that  is  quite  unclimbable  except  by  the  path  up  which  we 
mounted.  Above  the  gate  there  was  a  projecting  turret,  and 
the  loopholes  of  those  at  the  corners  both  commanded  it.  A 
dozen  men  with  muskets  ought  to  be  able  to  hold  that  path 
against  any  number;  for  even  if  they  got  up  to  the  gate,  I 
noticed  as  I  entered  that  there  are  holes  in  the  floor  of  the 
turret  above  by  which  they  could  fire  down  or  pour  hot  lead 
on  the  heads  of  any  trying  to  break  open  the  gate." 

"You  heard  what  they  said  about  the  ransom?  " 

"I  heard  them,  sahib,  and  only  hope  that  they  will  go 
direct  to  the  colonel;  but  I  am  afraid  they  will  try  Ghoolab 
Singh  first.  They  know  that  he  has  plenty  of  money  in  his 
treasure-chests." 

"  I  am  afraid  so  too,  Akram.  The  fact  that  Ghoolab  tried 
to  catch  me  before  shows  that  he  thinks  he  could  work  upon 
my  uncle  through  me;  and  as  he  seems  to  have  set  his  mind 
upon  obtaining  possession  of  the  fortress,  I  should  think  he 
would  pay  any  sum  these  scoundrels  elected  to  ask." 


206  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

The  man  nodded.  "He  will  pay  anything,  sahib;  it  is  not 
only  that  he  wants  the  place,  but  that  he  owes  the  colonel  a 
grudge  for  having  held  it  so  stoutly  in  spite  of  him,  and 
Ghoolab  never  forgets  an  injury  or  forgives  one  he  hates." 

"I  see  no  chance  of  making  our  escape,"  Percy  said,  again 
examining  the  windows. 

"None,  sahib;  a  rat  could  hardly  creep  through  these  loop- 
holes, and  had  we  means  to  cut  away  the  stone  we  should  be 
no  nearer  escape,  unless  we  had  also  a  rope,  and  that  a  long 
one,  for  we  are  at  the  lower  angle  of  the  rock,  and  I  should 
say  these  loopholes  must  be  eighty  feet  above  the  ground. 
We  have  nothing  to  make  a  rope  of,  as  you  see  they  have 
stripped  me  to  my  Cumberland,  and  have  taken  away  your 
coat;  so  our  clothes,  if  torn  up  and  twisted  together,  would 
scarce  make  a  rope  eighty  feet  long  that  would  support  its  own 
weight.  I  see  no  shadow  of  a  chance  of  escape  that  way,  nor 
in  any  way  if  the  guard  is  vigilant.  We  may  have  a  better 
chance  if  we  are  taken  to  Ghoolab;  he  would  not  have  us  at 
Jummoo,  for  should  any  complaint  be  laid  against  him  on 
your  account,  he  would,  of  course,  deny  that  he  knows  aught 
about  you;  but  wherever  we  are  taken,  we  shall  probably  find 
better  chances  of  escape  than  there  are  here.  Once  free,  we 
might  manage;  it  is  not  likely  that  any  of  these  dacoits  can 
know  that  I'm  from  Cashmere,  and  you  may  be  sure  I  shall 
not  let  them  find  out  that  I  speak  the  language.  If  we  could 
get  out,  then,  I  could  pass  as  a  peasant,  and  however  hot  the 
pursuit,  we  ought  to  be  able  to  evade  it." 

Five  days  passed;  the  prisoners  had  nothing  to  complain  of 
in  their  treatment,  being  kept  well  supplied  with  food.  This 
was  always  brought  in  by  two  armed  men,  while  two  others 
stood  at  the  door,  partly,  Percy  guessed,  to  prevent  any  attempt 
to  escape,  partly  to  see  that  they  held  no  conversation  with 
those  who  brought  in  the  food. 

"They  can't  trust  each  other,"  Akram  Chunder  said;  "they 
know  well  enough  that  the  bribe  you  could  offer  for  assistance 


A    PRISONER  207 

to  escape  would  be  too  much  for  any  single  dacoit  to  resist, 
and  their  leader  is  wise  not  to  trust  them." 

"The  sooner  we  are  out  of  this  the  better,"  Percy  said.  "I 
am  heartily  tired  of  looking  out  of  these  loopholes,  and  don't 
care  how  soon  I  am  on  my  way  to  Cashmere.  How  long  will 
it  be,  do  you  think,  before  a  message  can  come  from  Ghoolab 
Singh?"  ' 

"  If  he  is  at  Jummoo  a  messenger  should  be  able  to  go  and 
come  in  five  or  six  days,  sahib;  but  it  will  probably  be  some 
little  time  before  he  can  get  an  interview  with  Ghoolab.  This 
is  the  fifth  day  since  we  were  brought  here;  if  we  hear  nothing 
to-morrow  it  will  be  either  that  he  is  not  there,  or  that  the 
dacoit  has  demanded  so  large  a  sum  for  you  that  he  is  unwill- 
ing to  give  it.  Ghoolab  is  too  fond  of  money  to  pay  if  he 
can  help  it;  and  it  is  quite  possible  that  when  the  messenger 
gets  there  he  will  seize  and  torture  him  until  he  reveals  the 
position  of  this  place,  and  will  then  send  a  force  to  capture 
you  without  the  necessity  of  paying  for  you.  I  wonder 
whether  the  dacoits  have  foreseen  that  possibility.  It  is  just 
the  sort  of  thing  that  Ghoolab  would  delight  in." 

"  I  hope  he  won't  attempt  anything  of  the  sort,"  Percy  said; 
"  if  the  dacoits  find  themselves  surrounded  and  attacked  here, 
they  would  likely  enough  avenge  themselves  upon  him  by 
cutting  our  throats  before  his  men  could  force  their  way 
in." 

"That  is  just  what  they  would  do,  sahib;  but  as  Ghoolab 
would  foresee  the  risk,  it  will,  I  hope,  prevent  him  from 
carrying  out  that  plan.  He  will  learn  from  the  messenger 
that  the  place  can  hardly  be  taken  by  a  sudden  surprise,  and, 
therefore,  he  may  think  it  better  to  pay  the  sum  demanded, 
provided  it  is  net  too  large,  to  running  the  risk  of  losing  you 
altogether.  He  would  not  be  ill-pleased  to  hear  of  your  death, 
for  he  would  reckon  that  were  you  out  of  the  way,  sooner  or 
later  the  fortress  and  district  would  fall  into  his  hands;  but 
doubtless  he  would  rather  have  you,  in  order  that  he  may  drive 


208  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

a  good  bargain  with  the  colonel  and  get  him  to  hand  the  place 
over  in  exchange  for  you." 

"I  hope  my  uncle  will  do  nothing  of  the  sort,"  Percy  said. 

Akarm  Chunder  shook  his  head.  "You  are  his  son  by 
adoption,"  he  said,  "and  to  save  your  life  he  will  give  up  the 
fortress." 

"  Well,  I  hope  at  any  rate  he  will  negotiate  for  some  time, 
Akram,  in  which  case  it  will  be  hard  if  we  don't  manage  to 
slip  away  somehow.  I  wish  we  had  our  knives  with  us." 

"What  for,  sahib?  The  stonework  of  the  windows  is  solid, 
and  it  would  take  us  an  immense  time  to  enlarge  one  of  the 
loopholes  so  that  we  could  slip  through." 

"I  was  not  thinking  of  that;  but  if  we  had  our  knives  we 
could  get  off  one  of  the  back  legs  of  the  charpoy,  so  that  its 
loss  would  not  be  noticed,  and  cut  it  up  into  wedges,  which 
we  could  drive  in  all  round  the  door  if  we  heard  a  row  going 
on  outside.  The  door  is  a  very  strong  one,  and  if  we  could 
fasten  it  like  that  inside  they  might  not  be  able  to  break  it 
open  before  Ghoolab's  men  could  fight  their  way  in." 

"That  is  a  good  idea,  sahib,  and  if  we  had  knives  we  would 
carry  it  out,  but  without  them  I  don't  see  that  we  could  do 
anything.  We  might  move  the  two  charpoys  against  the  door, 
but  half  a  dozen  men  pushing  on  the  other  side  would  soon 
drive  them  out  of  the  way." 

"No,  there  is  nothing  to  be  done,"  Percy  agreed;  "and  I 
do  hope  that  Ghoolab  will  quite  see  that  in  the  event  of  his 
trying  to  take  the  place,  the  dacoits  will  be  pretty  sure  to 
finish  me  before  his  men  can  get  in." 

That  evening  they  unlashed  the  thin  binding  that  held  one 
of  the  beds  together,  and  each  one  armed  himself  with  one  of 
the  legs. 

"It  is  not  much  of  a  weapon,"  Percy  said,  "but  it  is  some- 
thing anyhow,  and  it  would  be  a  thousand  times  better  to 
make  a  fight  of  it  than  to  stand  still  and  have  one's  throat 
cut.  We  will  take  it  by  turns  to  keep  awake  to-night,  so  as  to 
hear  if  there  is  anything  stirring." 


A   PRISONER  209 

The  night,  however,  passed  without  any  unusual  sound 
being  heard.  Just  after  daybreak  they  heard  a  shout. 

"That  is  likely  to  be  the  messenger  returning,"  Akram 
Chunder  said.  "  If  it  had  been  an  enemy,  they  would  have 
come  in  the  dark." 

"But  they  would  not  be  able  to  find  their  way,"  Percy 
objected. 

"They  would  make  the  messenger  act  as  their  guide,  sahib; 
there  would  be  no  difficulty  about  that.  Besides  if  it  had 
been  an  enemy,  we  should  have  heard  other  shouts;  the  whole 
place  would  be  in  a  turmoil.  I  have  no  doubt  that  it  is  the 
messenger,  and  we  shall  presently  hear  what  Ghoolab  says." 

An  hour  passed,  and  then  the  door  opened  and  the  men 
brought  in  food.  "You  are  to  eat  this  quickly,"  one  said, 
speaking  for  the  first  time  since  they  had  been  imprisoned; 
"you  have  to  mount  and  ride  in  a  quarter  of  an  hour;  and 
Goolam  Tej  bade  me  tell  you  that  you  had  best  eat  a  good 
meal,  for  you  have  a  long  ride  before  you,  and  may  not  get 
another  before  nightfall." 

When,  after  eating  a  hearty  meal,  Percy  and  his  follower 
mounted  and  made  off,  escorted  by  twelve  of  the  dacoits,  they 
congratulated  themselves  that  they  had  escaped  the  danger 
they  feared. 

"  I  think  that  your  life  is  quite  safe  now,  sahib,"  Akram  said. 
"Whatever  Ghoolab  Singh  may  threaten,  he  will  scarcely  ven- 
ture to  do  you  harm.  He  was  always  opposed  to  war  with  the 
English,  knowing  that  they  would  assuredly  defeat  the  soldiers, 
and  he  is  far-sighted  enough  to  see  that  ere  long  the  Punjaub 
will  belong  to  them.  It  is  true  that  another  time  the  Sikhs 
might  put  a  larger  force  in  the  field  than  that  with  which  they 
last  fought;  but  so  can  the  English,  for  had  the  war  lasted  two 
weeks  longer,  the  army  that  was  coming  up  from  Scinde  would 
have  joined  that  which  fought  at  Sobraon  and  would  have  well- 
nigh  doubled  its  strength.  This  being  so,  Ghoolab  Singh, 
who  has  received  the  kingdom  of  Cashmere  at  the  hands  of 


210  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

the  English,  would  fear  that,  did  he  murder  one  of  your  race, 
troubles  would  arise  when  the  English  became  masters  of  the 
Punjaub.  In  the  case  of  your  uncle  he  would  have  no  scruples, 
for,  as  all  know,  Englishmen  who  take  service  with  native 
princes  do  so  without  the  consent  of  their  government,  and 
forfeit  all  right  to  their  protection.  Besides,  it  will  be  repre- 
sented that  the  colonel  was  in  fact  a  rebel  against  the  durbar, 
since  he  held  by  force  the  government  of  which  he  had  been 
deprived  by  the  orders  of  Runjeet  Singh  and  his  ministers, 
and  that  his  life  was  thereby  forfeited.  He  may  not  know 
that  you  have  been  serving  as  an  officer  in  the  English  army; 
but  you  must  let  him  hear  that,  and  that  the  governor-general 
himself  has  promised  you  an  appointment  in  the  Company's 
service,  and  has  taken  great  interest  in  you,  and  that,  should 
anything  befall  you,  he  will  assuredly  punish  whoever  may  be 
the  author  of  the  deed.  I  think  that  if  Ghoolab  had  known 
that,  he  would  not  have  accepted  the  dacoits'  offer.  Before, 
you  were  only  a  relative  of  a  man  with  no  friends  save  his 
own  soldiers,  and  had  he  executed  you  publicly  as  a  rebel  in 
the  market-place  of  Jummoo  there  would  have  been  no  one  to 
gainsay  him.  But  now  that  you  are  known  to  the  governor- 
general  and  the  commander-in-chief,  he  will  see  that  he  can- 
not act  as  he  will  without  drawing  upon  himself  the  anger  of 
the  English  authorities,  when  the  colonel  reports  the  fact  to 
them." 

"There  is  something  in  that,  Akram,  but  not  much.  Were 
he  asked  to  explain  why  he  had  put  one  of  English  blood  to 
death,  he  would  simply  reply  that  he  was  the  nephew  of  a  man 
who  had  set  the  government  of  Lahore  at  defiance,  had  main- 
tained himself  by  arms,  had  inflicted  heavy  losses  on  the  force 
sent  to  place  the  lawful  governor  appointed  by  the  durbar  in 
power;  that  the  person  executed  had  taken  part  in  this  act  of 
rebellion,  and  that  his  life  was  justly  forfeited.  As  all  this 
would  be  in  a  way  true,  there  could  really  be  no  answer  to  it, 
and  the  English  would  certainly  not  embroil  themselves  with 


A    PRISONER  211 

a  powerful  prince,  with  whom  they  were  anxious  to  keep  on 
good  terms,  on  such  a  matter.  Still,  if  I  do  see  Ghoolab  him- 
self, I  shall  certainly  make  the  most  of  the  kind  expressions 
of  Sir  Henry  Hardinge  and  the  commander-in-chief  when  I 
left  them  at  Lahore.  I  should  hardly  think,  however,  that  he 
will  see  me.  He  would  prefer  being  able  to  deny,  without 
chance  of  contradiction,  that  he  knew  anything  at  all  about 
me." 

"  But  in  that  case,  sahib,  how  could  he  use  you  as  the  means 
of  forcing  the  colonel  to  give  up  the  fortress  and  his  governor- 
ship of  the  district?  " 

"  I  should  think  that  most  likely  he  will  send  word  to  my 
uncle  that  he  has  learned  I  have  fallen  into  the  hands  of  some 
dacoits,  and  that  if  my  uncle  will  surrender  the  fortress  he 
will  take  measures  to  rescue  me  from  these  men,  who  will 
otherwise  put  me  to  death." 

"The  colonel  will  never  believe  that,"  Akram  said  decid- 
edly; "he  will  guess  at  once  that  you  are  in  the  hands  of 
Ghoolab." 

"Very  likely  he  will,  Akram,  but  he  won't  be  able  to  prove 
it,  and  Ghoolab  will  know  well  enough  that  if  he  were  to  put 
me  out  of  the  way  my  uncle  could  not  accuse  him  of  my  death, 
as  he  would  have  no  evidence  of  my  death  to  produce  in  sup- 
port; and  indeed,  if  Bhop  Lai  recovered  and  took  him  the 
news  of  our  being  carried  off,  all  he  could  say  would  be  a 
confirmation  of  Ghoolab's  story,  and  would  show  that  I  had 
indeed  been  carried  off  by  a  band  of  dacoits.  It  will  most 
likely  be  known  that  Goolam  Tej's  band  were  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood, and  were  doubtless  the  party  who  attacked  us." 

Akram  Chunder  was  silent.  He  could  not  gainsay  Percy's 
argument,  and  it  seemed  to  him  that  Ghoolab  Singh  had 
indeed  the  game  completely  in  his  hands. 

"I  am  afraid  it  is  as  you  say,  sahib,"  he  remarked  after  a 
while,  "and  that  we  shall  have,  as  we  agreed,  to  slip  out  of 
their  hands  somehow.  I  see  no  chance  at  present." 


212  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

"Certainly  not,"  Percy  agreed;  "we  have  no  arms,  and 
though  they  have  not  tied  us  this  time,  they  must  be  sure  that 
we  dare  not  try  to  escape,  surrounded  as  we  are  by  them,  for 
they  would  be  able  to  shoot  us  down  before  we  had  ridden  ten 
yards.  Moreover,  the  wood  is  too  dense  for  us  to  force  our 
way  through,  and  even  if  we  got  away  at  first,  we  should  be 
overtaken." 

The  road  they  were  traversing  was  a  mere  track  cut  through 
the  dense  forest,  and  it  was  with  difficulty  that  they  rode  two 
abreast.  Six  of  the  dacoits  rode  ahead  of  them,  six  behind, 
those  immediately  following  them  having,  as  they  observed 
when  they  mounted,  their  pistols  in  their  hands,  in  readiness 
to  shoot  at  the  first  indication  of  an  attempt  to  escape. 

"Do  you  think  we  are  going  towards  Jummoo?"  Percy 
asked  after  they  had  ridden  for  some  three  hours. 

"  I  cannot  say  for  certain,  sahib,  but  I  think  not.  I  feel 
sure  that  Jummoo  lies  much  to  the  right,  and  I  believe  that 
we  shall  come  down  into  the  valley  of  Cashmere  somewhere 
between  that  and  Serinagur.  Winding  about  as  we  have  been 
doing  in  the  bottom  of  valleys,  it  is  very  difficult  to  judge 
which  way  we  are  really  going." 

"  I  agree  with  you,  Akram.  I  have  been  watching  the  way 
in  which  the  sun  falls  upon  us,  and  as  you  say,  though  we  have 
wound  and  turned  a  good  deal,  I  do  not  think  we  have  ridden 
to  the  right  as  we  should  have  done  had  we  been  making  for 
Jummoo.  It  does  not  make  much  difference  whether  we  are 
taken  there  or  to  Serinagur,"  Percy  said;  "the  end  of  the 
journey  will  be  a  prison  in  any  case." 

"  There  is  no  doubt  about  that,  but  I  would  rather  they  took 
us  to  Serinagur,  sahib.  Ghoolab  Singh  has  been  years  at  Jum- 
moo, and  you  may  be  sure  that  in  that  time  he  has  built  new 
and  strong  prisons,  from  which  it  would  be  very  hard  to  escape. 
Serinagur  is  an  old  place,  and  its  prisons  would  not  be  like 
those  of  Jummoo,  and  ought  to  be  much  easier  to  get  out  of; 
besides,  being  so  much  farther  from  the  frontier,  they  might 


PERCY   AWAKES,  TO    FIND   THAT    THE   GUARDS   ARE    VIGILANT. 


A    PRISONER  213 

not  watch  us  so  closely,  thinking  we  should  know  it  would  be 
next  to  impossible  for  men  ignorant  of  the  language  to  make 
their  way  down  the  valley,  however  disguised." 

Half  an  hour  later  they  passed  through  a  village,  and  as  the 
forest  thinned  as  they  approached  it,  and  the  path  became 
broader,  the  dacoits  closed  in  on  both  sides  of  the  prisoners 
and  completely  surrounded  them.  The  inhabitants  fled  into 
their  houses  as  the  troop  rode  through.  No  halt  was  made, 
and  they  presently  came  upon  a  broad  road,  and  following  this 
again  began  to  mount.  All  day  they  travelled  among  very 
lofty  hills,  but  towards  evening  made  a  long  and  steep  descent. 

"I  think  I  know  that  last  pass  we  went  through,"  Akram 
Chunder  said;  "I  believe  we  are  now  descending  into  the 
valley  of  Cashmere.  If  I  am  right,  this  road  will  fall  into  it 
ten  miles  below  Serinagur." 

Shortly  afterwards  a  halt  was  called,  the  dacoits  turned  their 
horses  loose  to  graze,  and  proceeded  to  light  a  fire  to  cook  the 
food  they  had  brought  with  them.  They  gave  the  prisoners  a 
share,  but  when  the  meal  was  concluded  tied  them  securely 
hand  and  foot  and  placed  two  guards  over  them.  These  were 
relieved  at  short  intervals,  and  one  of  the  men  kept  the  fire 
burning  briskly.  Percy  woke  several  times  in  the  night,  and 
each  time  found  the  guard  vigilant;  and  being  convinced  that 
there  was  no  possibility  of  an  escape  while  in  their  charge,  he 
at  once  went  off  to  sleep  again. 

In  the  morning  their  bonds  were  loosed,  and  they  resumed 
their  journey.  About  mid-day  they  came  down  into  a  wide 
flat  valley.  A  large  river  meandered  with  many  turns  and 
windings  down  it,  and  smaller  streams  fell  into  it  at  many 
points. 

"Are  those  small  rivers  for  the  most  part  navigable?  "  Percy 
asked,  pointing  to  the  silver  threads  among  the  bright  green 
expanse  of  vegetation. 

"  Yes,  sahib,  the  rivers  are  the  roads  throughout  the  valley ; 
it  is  by  them  that  the  peasants  take  in  their  products  to 


r 


r 


214  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

Serinagur.  I  do  not  say  they  would  carry  a  large  barge,  but 
small  boats  can  make  their  way  along  them  right  up  to  the  foot 
of  the  hills." 

"  It  must  be  a  very  rich  country  judging  from  the  numbers 
of  villages  scattered  about." 

"It  is,  sahib;  with  good  government  Cashmere  would  be  a 
paradise.  It  is  never  very  hot  or  very  cold;  the  air  is  soft 
and  balmy,  the  soil  is  so  rich  that  everything  grows  in  abun- 
dance with  but  little  trouble  to  the  cultivator;  he  has  but  to 
gather  his  crops  and  pitch  them  into  his  boat,  and  he  can 
make  his  way  to  market  without  the  necessity  for  horse  or 
bullock.  But  the  government  is  bad,  and  has  been  so  for 
long.  Ghoolab  is  a  hard  master,  but  no  harder  than  its  former 
rulers  have  been.  The  people  would  be  rich  and  contented 
indeed  under  such  a  rule  as  that  of  the  English,  firm  and  just, 
for  in  addition  to  agriculture  they  have  many  other  means  of 
earning  their  living.  There  are  the  shawl-weavers  and  silver 
workers,  and  those  who  paint  on  lacquer,  and  every  member 
of  the  family  can  help  to  earn  something. 

"The  mountains  abound  with  game,  and  there  is  pasturage 
for  countless  flocks  and  herds.  The  poets  of  India  have 
always  sung  of  Cashmere  as  the  fairest  and  most  blest  by  nature 
of  any  spot  south  of  the  Hindoo  Koosh;  and  they  have  not 
spoken  a  bit  too  strongly.  With  good  rulers  it  would  be  that 
and  much  more.  The  fault  is  that  the  country  is  so  fair,  the 
climate  so  balmy,  and  life  so  easy,  that  the  people  are  too  soft 
in  their  habits  to  make  good  soldiers,  and  the  country  has 
therefore  been  overrun  countless  times  by  more  warlike  races. 
At  present  the  Sikhs  are  masters,  but  their  rule  is  likely  to  be 
even  shorter  than  that  of  others  who  have  conquered  it. 
When  the  English  are  lords  of  the  Punjaub,  they  will  see  how 
fair  and  how  rich  is  this  valley  of  Cashmere,  and  that  they 
have  but  to  stretch  out  their  hand  to  take  it.  It  will  be  a 
blessed  day  indeed  for  the  people  when  they  do  so." 

"I  don't  think  they  want  further  conquests,  Akram;  they 


A   PRISONER  215 

would  gladly  have  left  the  Punjaub  alone,  but  they  were 
forced  against  their  will  into  annexing  first  the  provinces 
beyond  the  Sutlej,  now  Jalindar,  and  next  time  perhaps  the 
rest  of  the  country,  but  there  can  be  no  aggressions  from 
Cashmere." 

"  No,  sahib,  but  the  same  necessity  may  arise  here  as  else- 
where. The  English  hate  oppression,  and  if  Ghoolab  or  his 
successors  grind  down  the  people  beyond  a  certain  point,  they 
will  interfere.  Moreover,  Cashmere  is  necessary  to  them. 
Through  it  runs  the  best  road  over  the  great  northern  chain 
of  mountains.  It  is,  quite  as  much  as  Afghanistan,  the  door 
of  India,  and  round  the  valley  at  its  northern  end  are  trouble- 
some tribes,  whom  the  rulers  of  Cashmere  have  never  been 
able  to  keep  in  order;  the  boundaries  of  China  are  not  far 
away.  A  generation  or  two  at  the  outside  and  the  English 
will  be  rulers  at  Serinagur  I  think,  sahib.  What  a  blessing 
it  would  be  to  the  country !  In  the  first  place,  there  would 
be  neither  over-taxation  nor  oppression.  All  would  live 
and  till  their  lands  and  work  their  loom,  secure  of  enjoying 
their  earnings  in  peace.  Money  would  flow  into  the  country, 
for  the  sahibs  would  come  in  great  numbers  from  the  plains, 
for  health  and  for  sport,  and  would  spend  their  money  freely, 
and  would  buy  our  manufactures  from  the  weavers  and  silver- 
smiths at  first  hand,  while  now  they  have  to  be  sent  down  to 
market  at  great  expense,  and  in  troublous  times  at  great  risk. 
There,  you  see,  sahib,  we  are  taking  the  northern  road;  in 
two  hours  we  shall  be  at  Serinagur." 

"All  the  better,  Akram;  this  is  a  lovely  view,  and  I  should 
be  a  long  time  before  I  was  tired  of  looking  at  it;  but  I  am 
eager  to  see  what  kind  of  a  place  we  are  going  to  be  shut  up 
in,  so  as  to  judge  our  chance  of  escape.  I  wish  we  could  get 
hold  of  a  couple  of  long  knives  and  hide  them  somewhere 
about  us,  before  we  reach  the  town;"  for  the  clothes  they 
had  worn  when  they  were  captured  had  been  restored  to  them 
before  starting. 


216  THROUGH    THE    SIKH    WAR 

"One  might  persuade  one  of  these  fellows  riding  by  us  to 
part  with  his  knife,  sahib;  but  our  pockets  are  empty;  at 
least  mine  are,  and  I  don't  suppose  they  have  left  you  any 
better  provided." 

"  No,  Akram,  but  I  have  twenty  gold  pieces  wrapped  up  in 
flannel  and  stowed  away  in  a  flap-pocket  at  the  bottom  of  my 
holster.  My  uncle  had  it  made  on  the  day  I  left  him.  He 
said  that  it  might  be  useful  to  have  a  small  store  of  money 
there  in  case  I  ever  fell  among  thieves;  and  it  is  so  contrived 
that  even  if  anyone  put  his  hand  right  down  to  the  bottom  of 
the  holster  he  would  not  suspect  that  there  was  a  pocket  there, 
for  the  flap  exactly  fits  it,  and  makes  a  sort  of  false  bottom. 
The  money  was  stowed  away  there,  and  I  have  never  thought 
of  it  since." 

"It  must  be  well  hidden,  sahib,"  Akram  Chunder  said  with 
a  laugh,  "for  I  have  put  the  saddle  on  and  off  a  hundred 
times,  and  put  your  pistols  and  sometimes  food  into  the  hol- 
ster, and  never  for  a  moment  suspected  that  there  was  money 
lying  there.  Are  you  sure  that  it  hasn't  been  taken?  " 

Percy  put  his  hand  down  into  the  holster. 

"It  is  all  right,  Akram,  I  can  feel  the  roll  of  flannel  under 
the  flap." 

"Well,  sahib,  if  you  can  get  out  four  pieces  it  is  hard  if  I 
don't  manage  to  get  a  couple  of  knives  from  this  fellow  next 
to  me;  as  for  the  rest,  if  we  can  but  hide  them  about  us  they 
may  prove  the  means  of  our  getting  free  from  prison. 
Thinking  it  over,  it  seemed  to  me  that  our  greatest  difficulty 
was  that  we  had  no  means  of  bribing  anyone." 

Percy  managed  to  get  out  four  gold  pieces,  and  passed  them 
quietly  to  his  follower. 

"Comrade,"  the  latter  said  in  a  low  voice  to  the  dacoit  rid- 
ing beside  him,  "  you  have  two  knives  in  your  girdle,  at  what 
do  you  value  them?  " 

The  man  looked  keenly  at  his  prisoner.  Their  clothing 
had  been  searched  with  scrupulous  care,  and  he  felt  sure  that 
no  hiding-place  could  have  been  overlooked. 


A    PRISONER  217 

"  It  depends  on  who  wanted  to  buy, "  he  said  cautiously. 

"Suppose  I  wanted  to  buy." 

"Then  they  would  be  worth  two  gold  pieces  each." 

"That  is  beyond  my  means.  I  would  not  mind  giving  a 
gold  piece  for  each  of  them." 

"Where  are  the  pieces  to  come  from?" 

"That  is  my  business;  perhaps  I  have  them  hidden  in  my 
mouth,  or  my  ears,  or  my  hair." 

"I  dare  not  do  it,"  the  man  said;  "it  might  be  noticed." 

"'Not  if  you  managed  it  well,"  Akram  said.  "You  might 
ride  close  up  to  me  when  the  road  happens  to  be  narrow,  and 
pass  them  in  a  moment;  besides  we  are  not  thinking  of  escape 
now;  but  they  may  be  useful  to  us  afterwards." 

"It  is  too  great  a  risk,"  the  man  repeated  irresolutely. 

"  Well,  I  will  give  you  three  pieces  for  the  two,  though  it 
is  hard  that  you  should  beggar  me." 

The  man  nodded,  and  presently  Akram  saw  him  shift  the 
two  knives  to  the  side  of  his  girdle  next  to  him.  A  short 
distance  farther  on  he  glanced  round  at  the  two  men  riding 
behind.  They  were  laughing  and  talking  together,  and 
evidently  paying  but  little  attention  to  the  prisoners.  A 
moment  later  he  touched  his  horse's  rein,  and  his  knee  rub- 
bed against  Akram' s.  The  latter  passed  three  gold  pieces 
into  his  hand,  snatched  the  knives  from  his  girdle,  and 
thrust  them  under  his  coat,  and  the  dacoit  at  once  drew 
off  to  his  former  position.  Riding  close  together,  Akram  had 
no  difficulty  in  passing  one  of  the  knives  to  Percy,  who  then 
again  opened  the  flap  in  the  holster  and  took  the  money  from 
its  flannel  inclosure  and  handed  seven  pieces  to  Akram. 

"  Where  do  you  mean  to  hide  them  ?  "  he  asked. 

"In  the  folds  of  my  waist-sash;  that  is  the  only  place  to 
put  them  at  present.  Of  course  if  they  search  us  they  will 
discover  the  money  and  the  knives,  but  they  will  be  so  sure 
that  the  dacoits  have  taken  everything  from  us  that  they  may 
not  think  it  worth  while  to  do  so.  If  they  once  leave  us  in  a 


218  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

room  alone  we  can  hide  them  away  so  that  nothing  but  a  care- 
ful search  will  find  them;  but  at  present  we  must  trust  to 
chance." 

They  were  now  approaching  the  town,  which  extends  some 
two  miles  on  either  side  of  the  river  Jelum,  across  which  sev- 
eral bridges  are  thrown.  Percy  was  disappointed  at  the 
appearance  of  the  place,  which  contained  no  buildings  of 
sufficient  importance  to  tower  above  the  rest.  He  was  most 
struck  with  the  green  appearance  of  the  roofs.  On  remark- 
ing this  to  Akram,  the  latter  replied : 

"They  are  gardens,  sahib;  the  roofs  are  for  the  most  part 
flat,  and  they  are  overlaid  with  a  deep  covering  of  earth, 
which  keeps  the  houses  warm  in  winter  and  cool  in  summer. 
The  soil  is  planted  with  flowers,  and  forms  a  terrace,  where 
the  family  sit  in  the  cool  of  the  evening." 

"That  explains  it.  It  is  a  pity  the  same  thing  is  not  done 
in  other  towns;  it  looks  wonderfully  pretty." 

The  people  they  passed  on  the  road  were  dressed  somewhat 
differently  to  those  of  India;  the  men  wore  large  turbans  and 
a  great  woollen  vest  with  wide  sleeves;  while  the  women 
were  for  the  most  part  dressed  in  red  gowns,  also  with  large 
loose  sleeves.  Round  the  head  was  a  red  twisted  handker- 
chief, over  which  was  thrown  a  white  veil,  which  did  not, 
however,  cover  the  face. 

"Is  the  language  at  all  like  Punjaubi?  "  Percy  asked. 

"No,  sahib,  it  differs  altogether  from  all  the  Indian  tongues, 
so  far  as  I  have  heard,  and  is  therefore  very  difficult  to  be 
learned  by  the  natives  of  other  parts." 

Before  reaching  the  town  the  horsemen  turned  off  from  the 
main  road,  and  making  a  wide  detour  so  as  to  avoid  it  alto- 
gether, continued  their  course  along  the  foot  of  the  hills  on 
the  left  of  the  valley,  and  after  proceeding  some  two  miles 
above  the  upper  end  of  the  city,  mounted  the  hill,  and  in  half 
an  hour  reached  a  building  standing  at  considerable  height 
above  the  valley. 


A   PRISONER  219 


"That  is  just  as  we  expected,  sahib.  You  see  we  have 
avoided  the  town,  and  Ghoolab  will,  if  questioned,  be  able  to 
affirm  that  we  have  never  been  brought  there.  None  of  the 
people  we  met  on  the  road  will  have  noticed  us,  dressed 
as  we  are,  in  the  middle  of  this  band,  whom  they  will  take  to 
be  the  following  of  some  sirdar." 

"  If  that  is  to  be  our  prison,  Akram,  it  does  not  look  any- 
thing like  such  a  difficult  place  to  get  out  of  as  the  dacoit's 
castle;  but  of  course  it  all  depends  on  where  they  put  us." 

They  stopped  at  the  entrance  to  the  building.  They  were 
evidently  expected,  for  an  officer  came  out  at  once,  followed 
by  six  armed  men.  He  addressed  no  questions  to  the  dacoits, 
but  simply  nodded  as  they  led  the  two  prisoners  forward.  Two 
of  the  men  took  the  bridles  of  the  horses  and  led  them  inside 
the  gates,  which  were  then  closed. 

Percy  and  Akram  dismounted,  and  the  officer,  entering  a 
door  from  the  court-yard,  ordered  them  in  Punjaubi  to  follow 
him.  To  Percy's  great  satisfaction  he  led  the  way  up  a 
staircase,  instead  of,  as  the  lad  had  feared  might  be  the  case, 
down  one  leading  into  some  subterranean  chamber.  After 
ascending  some  twenty  steps  they  went  along  a  narrow  passage, 
at  the  end  of  which  was  a  strong  door  studded  with  nails.  One 
of  the  men  produced  a  key  and  opened  it,  and  on  entering 
Percy  found  himself  in  a  chamber  some  fifteen  feet  square. 
It  was  not  uncomfortably  furnished,  and  had  two  native  bed- 
steads. The  floor  was  covered  with  rugs.  A  low  table  stood 
in  the  centre,  and  there  were  two  low  wooden  stools  near  it. 
Percy's  first  glance,  however,  was  towards  the  window.  It  was 
of  good  size,  and  reached  to  within  a  foot  from  the  floor.  It 
was,  however,  closed  by  a  double  grating  of  strong  iron  bars, 
with  openings  of  but  four  or  five  inches  square. 

"Do  not  fear,  no  harm  is  intended  you,"  the  officer  said. 
"  For  a  time  you  must  make  yourselves  as  comfortable  as  you 
can  here.  Your  servant  will  be  allowed  to  be  with  you.  If 
there  is  anything  you  require  it  will  be  supplied  to  you." 


220  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

So  saying  he  left  the  room,  and  the  door  was  then  locked. 

"Thank  goodness  you  are  left  with  me,  Akram,"  Percy 
exclaimed.  "The  thing  I  have  been  dreading  most  of  all  is 
that  we  should  be  separated;  and  if  that  had  been  so,  I  should 
have  lost  all  hope  of  escape." 

"  I  have  feared  that  too,  sahib,  though  I  did  not  speak  of 
it;  but  before  we  think  of  anything  farther,  let  us  hide  one  of 
the  knives  and  half  the  money  in  the  beds." 

"Why  not  hide  them  both?  "  Percy  asked. 

"  Because  we  might  be  moved  suddenly,  sahib.  Ghoolab 
might  order  us  to  be  taken  to  another  prison,  or  might  send 
for  us  down  to  Jummoo;  there  is  never  any  saying;  so  it  is 
well  to  keep  some  of  the  money  about  us.  Of  course  we  may 
be  searched,  but  in  that  case  we  should  loose  but  half.  How- 
ever, I  do  not  think  they  will  do  that  nowl  They  will  make 
quite  sure  that  the  dacoits  will  have  taken  everything  there 
was  to  take." 


CHAPTER  XIII 

ESCAPE 

HAVING  carefully  hidden  one  of  the  knives  and  nine  pieces 
of  gold  in  the  beds,  they  divided  the  remaining  eight 
pieces  between  them.  Akram  took  off  his  turban,  unrolled 
his  hair,  and  hid  his  four  pieces  in  it.  He  then,  with  the 
point  of  a  knife,  unripped  two  or  three  stitches  in  the  lining 
of  Percy's  coat  and  dropped  his  money  into  the  hole. 

"How  about  the  knife,  Akram?  That  is  a  much  harder 
thing  to  hide." 

"  It  must  be  hidden  on  you,  sahib,  so  that  if  we  are  sepa- 
rated you  will  be  able  to  use  it  if  you  see  an  opportunity." 

He  took  the  knife,  and  with  it  cut  off  a  strip  an  inch  wide 
from  his  cloak;  then  he  pulled  up  one  of  the  legs  of  Percy's 
long  Sikh  trousers,  and  with  the  strip  of  cloth  strapped  the 
knife  tightly  against  the  side  of  the  shin-bone;  the  handle 
came  close  up  to  the  knee,  the  point  extended  nearly  to  the 
ankle-bone. 

"There  is  no  fear  of  that  shifting,"  he  said  when  he  had 
fastened  the  bandage  and  pulled  the  leg  of  the  trouser  down 
again.  "And  even  if  they  felt  you  all  over  they  might  well 
omit  to  pass  their  hands  over  the  leg  below  the  knee." 

"It  is  certainly  a  capital  hiding-place,  Akram;  I  should 
never  have  thought  of  putting  it  there,  and  it  is  the  last  place 
they  would  think  of  searching  for  anything.  Now,  we  can 
have  a  look  at  the  window;  it  is  very  strongly  grated." 

221 


222  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

Akram  shook  his  head.  "There  is  no  getting  through  there, 
sahib;  these  bars  have  not  been  up  many  years.  The  stone- 
work is  perfect,  and  with  only  our  knives  it  would  be  absolutely 
impossible  to  cut  through  that  double  grating.  The  room  has 
doubtless  been  meant  for  someone  whom  they  wanted  to  hold 
fast  and  yet  to  treat  respectfully.  We  may  give  up  all  idea  of 
escaping  through  the  window.  That  stonework  was  evidently 
put  up  at  the  same  time  as  the  gratings.  You  see  the  rest  of 
the  wall  is  of  brick." 

"I  don't  see  it,  Akram;  it  is  all  covered  with  this  white 
plaster." 

"Yes,  sahib;  but  all  the  houses  here  are  built  of  brick,  that 
is  to  say  of  brick  and  woodwork,  and  I  noticed  this  one  is 
also;  besides,  if  you  look  at  the  plaster  carefully  you  can  make 
out  the  lines  of  the  courses  of  brick  underneath  it;  it  is  a  thin 
coat,  and  badly  laid  on." 

"It  is  a  nuisance  it  is  there,"  Percy  remarked.  "If  it 
hadn't  been  for  that  it  might  have  been  possible  with  our 
knives  to  have  cut  away  the  mortar  between  the  bricks,  and  so 
have  got  them  out  one  by  one,  till  we  made  a  hole  big  enough 
to  get  through.  Of  course  it  would  be  a  long  job,  but  by 
replacing  the  bricks  carefully  in  their  places  and  working  at 
night  it  might  have  been  managed.  But  this  white  plaster 
renders  it  quite  impossible  unless  the  whole  thing  could  be 
done  in  one  night,  which  would  be  out  of  the  question.  There 
is  the  floor;  we  must  examine  that  presently.  I  have  read  of 
escapes  from  prison  by  men  who  managed  to  raise  a  flooring 
stone,  made  a  hole  underneath  big  enough  to  work  in,  and  so 
made  their  way  either  into  another  room  or  through  the  out- 
side wall.  It  would  need  time,  patience,  and  hard  work; 
but  unless  we  are  able  to  bribe  the  man  who  brings  us  in  food, 
that  is  how  it  must  be  done." 

He  pushed  aside  one  of  the  rugs.  The  floor  was  composed 
of  smooth  slabs  of  stone  about  a  foot  square.  "  It  could  not 
be  better,"  he  said.  "There  should  be  no  great  difficulty  in 


ESCAPE  223 

getting  up  a  couple  of  these  slabs.  They  are  fitted  pretty 
closely,  but  we  ought  to  be  able  to  find  one  where  there  is 
room  for  the  blade  of  a  knife  to  get  in  between  it  and  those 
next  to  it." 

"That  is  good,  sahib;  I  should  never  have  thought  of  get- 
ting out  that  way.  However,  if  you  tell  me  what  to  do  I  will 
do  it; "  and  Akram  went  to  the  place  where  he  had  hidden 
his  knife. 

"There  is  no  hurry,  Akram.  We  can  fix  on  a  stone  while 
there  is  daylight,  but  we  can't  begin  until  we  are  sure  that 
everyone  is  asleep.  They  may  bring  us  in  some  food  at  any 
moment;  and  before  we  begin  in  earnest  we  shall  have  to  find 
out  the  hours  at  which  they  visit  us,  and  how  late  they  come 
in  at  night." 

At  this  moment  they  heard  steps  coming  along  the  passage. 

"Sit  down  on  that  stool,"  Percy  said,  while  he  threw  him- 
self down  on  one  of  the  charpoys.  "We  must  look  as  dull 
and  stupid  as  we  can." 

A  man  brought  in  a  dish  of  boiled  rice  and  meat.  Akram 
addressed  him  in  Punjaubi,  but  he  shook  his  head  and  went 
out  without  a  word. 

"If  none  of  these  fellows  speak  anything  but  their  own 
language,  sahib,  it  will  be  difficult  to  try  and  get  them  to  help 
us,  for  it  will  not  do  to  let  out  that  I  can  talk  the  language; 
for  if  we  once  get  free,  that  will  be  our  best  hope  of  getting 
through  the  country." 

"We  will  try  the  other  way  first  at  any  rate,  Akram.  The 
money  we  have  is  not  sufficient  to  induce  a  man  to  risk  his 
life  in  assisting  us,  and  he  might  possibly  think  he  could  do 
better  by  betraying  us;  in  which  case  we  might  be  separated 
and  put  in  a  much  worse  place  than  this." 

"That  is  true  enough,  sahib;  at  the  same  time  the  money 
we  have  is  a  very  large  amount  here.  He  would  not  get  above 
three  or  four  rupees  a  month,  so  that  it  would  be  four  or  five 
years'  pay.  Still  there  is  the  danger  of  his  betraying  us. 


224  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

As  you  say,  we  had  better  try  in  the  first  place  to  get  out  as 
you  propose." 

"It  is  nothing  to  what  men  have  done  sometimes,  Akram. 
They  have  escaped  through  walls  of  solid  stone.  They  don't 
build  like  that  here.  The  bricks  are  not  generally  well 
baked,  and  are  often  only  sun-dried.  As  soon  as  we  have 
finished  this  food  we  will  examine  the  stones.  We  will  begin 
near  the  outside  wall — we  might  get  into  an  inhabited  room 
if  we  went  the  other  way — and  working  towards  the  outside 
we  know  we  have  only  to  get  through  it  to  be  free,  for  these 
rugs  will  make  ropes  by  which  we  can  slide  down  without 
difficulty." 

Examining  the  flags  along  the  side  of  the  outer  wall  they 
found  two  or  three  where,  without  much  difficulty,  they  could 
insert  a  knife  in  the  interstices. 

"Let  us  set  to  work  at  once,  Akram;  we  can  hear  the  man's 
footstep  right  along  the  passage,  and  shall  have  plenty  of  time 
to  drop  the  stone  in  and  throw  the  rug  over  it  before  he 
reaches  the  door.  I  want  to  see  what  is  underneath,  and  I 
specially  want  to  have  a  place  to  hide  the  two  knives  in  case 
they  should  take  it  into  their  heads  to  search  us. " 

The  cement  in  which  the  flat  slabs  were  laid  was  by  no 
means  hard,  and  in  half  an  hour  they  had  cut  it  all  round  one 
of  the  stones.  This  was,  however,  still  firmly  attached  to  the 
cement  below  it.  "  I  am  afraid  to  use  any  pressure,  Akram, 
for  we  might  break  the  knives." 

"That  is  so,  sahib;  if  we  had  an  iron  bar  we  might  break 
the  stone,  but  I  see  no  other  way  of  loosening  it.  Perhaps 
if  we  were  to  jump  upon  it  we  might  shake  it." 

"I  don't  think  there  would  be  much  chance  of  that,  and 
if  there  is  anyone  in  the  room  below  they  might  come  up  to 
see  what  we  are  doing.  We  might  fill  the  cracks  with  water 
all  round  and  by  pouring  in  more  water  from  time  to  time  it 
might  soak  in  and  soften  the  cement,  but  of  course  that  de- 
pends entirely  upon  its  quality;  however  we  might  as  well  do 
that  at  once." 


ESCAPE  225 

They  filled  the  cracks  with  water,  drew  the  rug  over  the 
place,  and  then  returned  to  their  seats.  Presently  Akram 
said: 

"We  might  try  wedges,  sahib." 

"So  we  might,  I  did  not  think  of  that;  and  there  are  the 
beds,  of  course." 

"Yes;  I  could  cut  away  some  pieces  from  the  under  part 
of  the  framework  of  one  of  the  beds." 

"That  will  do  capitally." 

It  was  slow  work  cutting  out  a  piece  of  bamboo  sufficiently 
large  to  make  a  couple  of  dozen  of  wedges,  and  it  was  dark 
long  before  Akram  had  finished.  It  took  another  three  hours 
to  split  it  up  and  make  it  into  wedges.  As  soon  as  these 
were  completed,  they  drove  them  in  close  to  each  other  along 
one  side  of  the  stone,  pressing  them  in  with  the  haft  of  a 
knife  with  their  united  weight.  When  all  were  wedged  in 
Akram  tried  the  stone. 

"  It  is  as  firm  as  ever,  sahib." 

"Yes;  I  did  not  expect  that  we  should  be  able  to  move  it, 
especially  as  we  have  not  hammered  in  the  wedges.  If  it 
does  not  move  by  morning  we  must  tap  them  in,  giving  a  tap 
every  four  or  five  minutes;  that  would  not  be  noticed;  but  I 
hope  we  shall  find  it  is  loose  then.  You  see  the  crack  is  full 
of  water,  and  so  the  wedges  will  swell  and  exercise  a  tremen- 
dous pressure.  In  some  places  they  split  stone  like  that." 

They  threw  themselves  down  on  the  beds  and  slept  till 
morning  broke.  Percy  was  the  first  to  open  his  eyes,  and  at 
once  leapt  up,  ran  across  the  room,  moved  the  rug,  and  exam- 
ined the  stone. 

"  It  has  moved,  Akram.  The  side  opposite  the  wedges  is 
jammed  hard  up  against  the  next  stone." 

"It  is  as  firm  as  ever,  sahib,"  Akram  said,  trying  it  with 
his  knife. 

"Yes,  because  it  is  held  by  the  pressure  of  the  wedges. 
When  we  get  them  out  we  shall  find  that  it  is  loose  from  the 
cement." 


226  THROUGH  THE   SIKH  WAR 

They  found,  however,  that  there  was  no  possibility  of  get- 
ting out  the  strips  of  wood. 

"We  have  only  to  wait,"  Percy  said.  "As  soon  as  they 
are  dry  they  will  be  loose."  It  was,  however,  two  days  before 
the  moisture  had  evaporated  sufficiently  for  them  to  be  able 
to  draw  out  the  wedges. 

"  Now,  let  us  both  put  our  knives  in  on  this  side  and  try 
and  lift  it." 

Repeated  trials  showed  them  that  this  could  not  be  done. 
In  the  evening,  however,  when  the  lamp  was  brought  them, 
they  heated  the  point  of  one  of  the  knives  in  the  flame  until 
it  had  so  far  lost  its  temper  that  they  were  able  to  bend  the 
point  over  by  pressing  it  on  one  of  the  flags.  Again  heat- 
ing it  they  dipped  it  in  water  to  harden.  They  then  ground 
the  point  down  on  one  of  the  stones  until  they  were  able 
to  pass  it  down  the  joint  that  the  action  of  the  wedges  had 
widened.  The  bent  point  caught  under  the  stone,  and  they 
had  no  difficulty  in  raising  it. 

"There  is  the  first  step  done,"  Percy  exclaimed  in  delight. 
"You  had  better  warm  the  knife  and  straighten  the  point 
again." 

They  experienced  no  great  difficulty  in  getting  up  the  next 
stone,  which  they  had  loosened  in  a  similar  way  to  the  first 
while  waiting  for  the  wedges  to  dry.  As  soon  as  this  was  up 
they  began  cutting  into  the  cement.  The  surface  was  hard, 
and  the  knives  at  first  did  little  more  than  scratch  it;  but 
below  they  found  it  much  softer  and  got  on  more  rapidly. 
As  they  removed  the  cement  they  placed  the  powder  a  hand- 
ful at  a  time  on  the  window-sill,  and  blew  it  gradually  out 
through  the  grating.  After  three  nights  of  continuous  work 
they  had  made  a  hole  a  foot  deep  and  come  down  upon 
wooden  planking. 

"This  is  doubtless  the  ceiling  of  the  room  underneath," 
Percy  said.  "There  can  be  no  one  sleeping  there  or  they 
would  have  heard  the  scratching  overhead."  By  lifting  up 


PERCY   AND   AKRAM   ATTEMPT   TO   ESCAPE   FROM    PRISON. 


$ 

ESCAPE  227 


the  stones,  which  they  always  replaced  at  daybreak,  they 
could  hear  voices,  and  did  not  recommence  their  work  at 
night  till  they  were  well  assured  that  no  one  was  stirring  be- 
low. As  the  stones  they  had  taken  out  were  next  to  the  wall, 
they  now  commenced  operations  on  the  brickwork.  This 
they  found  much  easier,  as  the  mortar  was  nothing  like  so 
hard  as  the  cement,  and  on  cutting  it  out  between  the  bricks 
they  had  no  great  difficulty  in  moving  these.  After  two 
nights'  work  they  had  taken  them  all  out  with  the  exception 
of  the  outside  layer,  as  they  were  able  to  calculate  by  the 
thickness  of  the  wall  at  the  window.  During  the  daytime  the 
bricks  that  had  been  removed  were  stowed  away  in  the  hole. 

"We  shall  be  out  to-night,"  Percy  said  exultantly,  as  they 
replaced  the  flags  for  the  last  time.  "This  last  layer  will  be 
easy  work,  for  as  soon  as  we  have  cut  round  one  brick  we  shall 
be  able  to  pull  it  in,  and  can  then  get  a  hand  through  the 
hole,  and  the  others  will  come  quite  easily  as  soon  as  we  cut 
away  the  mortar  a  bit.  There  will  be  no  occasion  to  tear  up 
the  rugs  to  make  a  rope.  We  are  not  more  than  eighteen  or 
twenty  feet  from  the  ground,  and  two  or  three  of  them  knotted 
together  will  be  enough.  We  will  set  one  of  the  beds  over 
the  hole  and  tie  the  end  to  that." 

Percy  felt  nervous  all  day,  being  in  fear  every  time  he  heard 
a  footstep  in  the  passage  that  something  might  occur  which 
would  upset  all  their  plans.  They  had  now  been  ten  days  in 
their  prison,  so  there  was  time  for  a  messenger  to  have  gone 
to  Jummoo,  and  thence  to  the  fortress  and  back.  Still  he 
hoped  that  his  uncle  would  at  any  rate  refuse  to  accept 
Ghoolab  Singh's  first  offer,  whatever  it  might  be,  and  that 
lengthy  negotiations  would  go  on.  Nothing  out  of  the  ordi- 
nary routine  happened;  their  guard  came  three  times  a  day 
as  usual  with  their  food;  and  after  his  last  visit  Percy  sprang 
from  the  couch. 

"  Hurrah !  Next  time  he  comes  he  will  find  the  place  empty, 
Akram.  Now  let  us  set  to  work  at  once." 


228  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

Four  hours  of  hard  work  sufficed  to  make  a  hole  large 
enough  for  them  to  crawl  through.  The  charpoy  was  brought 
over  the  hole,  the  money  stowed  away  in  their  clothes,  and 
the  rugs  knotted.  Then,  feet  foremost,  Percy  wriggled  out 
through  the  hole,  holding  the  rope  tightly,  and  slid  down  to 
the  ground,  while  two  minutes  later  Akram  stood  beside  him. 
They  had  already  taken  off  their  turbans  and  rewound  them 
much  more  loosely,  so  as  to  resemble  closely  those  worn  in 
Cashmere.  They  started  at  once  up  the  hill,  and  continued 
their  course  until  they  reached  a  wood  high  up  on  the  moun- 
tain side.  They  had  already  determined  upon  their  course. 
It  was  of  the  greatest  importance  that  they  should  obtain 
dresses  of  the  country,  for  though  they  might  have  made  their 
way  along  the  hills  they  would  have  difficulty  in  buying  food, 
and  might  find  horsemen  already  posted  at  the  various  passes 
by  which  the  mountain  ranges  were  traversed.  At  daybreak 
Akram  took  off  his  long  coat,  arranged  his  clothes  in  the 
fashion  of  Cashmere  peasants,  and  started  boldly  for  the  town. 

"The  shops  will  soon  be  open,"  he  said,  "and  unless  any- 
one happens  to  go  round  to  the  back  of  our  prison,  which  is 
not  likely,  they  will  not  find  out  that  we  are  gone  until  the 
man  enters  at  nine  o'clock  with  our  food,  and  long  before  that 
I  shall  be  here  again.  You  need  not  be  uneasy  about  me, 
sahib.  Being  really  a  native  of  the  valley,  no  one  can  suspect 
me  of  being  anything  else." 

Soon  after  eight  o'clock  he  returned  with  two  complete 
suits,  in  which  they  were  soon  attired.  As  the  natives  of 
Cashmere  are  fairer  than  those  of  the  plains  of  India,  it  needed 
but  a  slight  wash  of  some  dye  Akram  had  brought  up  with  him 
to  convert  Percy's  bronzed  face  to  the  proper  tint,  and  as  soon 
as  this  was  done  they  descended  the  hill  and  came  upon  the 
main  road  below  the  city.  Soon  afterwards  some  horsemen 
passed  them,  galloping  at  a  furious  rate.  These  did  not  even 
glance  at  the  supposed  peasants,  but  continued  their  course 
down  the  valley.  Other  and  much  larger  bodies  of  horsemen 


ESCAPE 

afterwards  passed  them,  but,  like  the  first,  without  asking  a 
question. 

"Doubtless  they  think  we  have  at  least  twenty  miles  start," 
Akram  said.  "  I  expect  the  first  party  were  going  right  down 
to  the  mouth  of  the  valley,  warning  all  the  towns  and  villages 
to  be  on  the  look-out  for  us.  The  others,  when  they  think 
they  must  have  passed  us,  will  scatter  and  occupy  all  the  roads 
and  passes.  Some  of  them  will  push  on  until  almost  within 
sight  of  the  fortress,  so  as  to  catch  us  there  if  we  manage  to 
get  through  the  woods  and  pass  the  lines  of  watchers." 

At  a  leisurely  pace  they  proceeded  down  the  valley,  Akram 
sometimes  entering  into  conversation  with  peasants  they  met, 
and  going  into  shops  and  buying  provisions;  he  learnt  in  the 
villages  that  strict  orders  had  been  given  to  watch  for  a  Sikh 
with  a  young  Englishman  who  had  escaped  from  a  prison  at 
Serinagur.  Akram  joined  in  their  expressions  of  wonder  as 
to  how  an  Englishman  could  have  got  there,  and  how  the 
escape  had  been  managed,  and  mentioned  that  he  was  on  his 
way  to  visit  some  relations  at  Jummoo. 

When  near  the  mouth  of  the  valley  he  purchased  some  cot- 
ton cloths,  such  as  peasants  working  in  the  fields  would  wear, 
and  presently  they  put  on  these  and  left  those  behind  them 
that  had  proved  so  useful,  Percy's  skin  being  stained  brown 
wherever  exposed  by  this  more  scanty  costume.  Thus  attired 
they  issued  out  from  the  mouth  of  the  valley  and  went  forward 
into  Ghoolab  Singh's  country,  as  they  agreed  that  this  was  the 
place  where  they  were  the  least  likely  to  be  looked  for.  They 
had  been  four  days  on  their  way  down  from  Serinagur,  and 
decided  to  travel  still  farther  west,  so  as  to  return  to  the  for- 
tress from  the  side  opposite  to  that  where  a  watch  was  likely 
to  be  kept  up  for  them. 

Three  days'  more  walking,  and,  having  made  the  detour, 
they  approached  the  fortress  on  the  west.  They  met  with  no 
suspicious  party  on  their  way,  and  as  they  ascended  the  zigzag 
road  from  the  valley  felt  with  delight  that  they  were  now  per- 


230  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

fectly  safe.  As  usual  the  drawbridge  was  down  and  the  gates 
open,  and  they  passed  in  without  question  from  the  men  on 
guard  there.  As  they  went  down  the  street  they  saw  a  figure 
they  recognized,  and  Percy  ran  forward  and  exclaimed : 

"  Bhop  Lai,  I  am  indeed  glad  to  see  you !  So  those  rascally 
dacoits  did  not  kill  you  after  all?  " 

"  Blessed  be  the  day,  sahib ! "  Bhop  Lai  exclaimed  with 
delight.  "There  has  been  sore  grief  over  you.  The  colonel 
has  been  in  a  terrible  state  since  I  was  carried  in  here  and 
told  him  how  you  had  been  seized  by  dacoits,  and  still  more 
has  he  been  troubled  since,  ten  days  ago,  he  learned  from  a 
messenger  of  Ghoolab  Singh  that  you  had  fallen  into  the 
clutches  of  that  notorious  scamp  Goolam  Tej.  The  Ranee  is 
ill  and  keeps  her  bed. 

"Ah,  Akram  Chunder!  truly  I  am  rejoiced  to  see  you  also. 
I  was  glad  indeed  that  you  were  with  the  young  sahib,  for  I 
knew  you  to  be  a  man  of  resources." 

"  It  was  the  young  sahib  himself  who  devised  the  plan  by 
which  we  escaped,  Bhop  Lai;  and  how  are  your  wounds?  " 

"They  are  very  sore  yet,  and  the  hakim  says  that  it  will  be 
many  weeks  before  I  am  fit  to  sit  in  the  saddle  again;  but  now 
that  our  sahib  is  back  safely  I  shall  have  no  more  to  fret  about, 
and  shall  mend  rapidly." 

By  this  time  they  had  arrived  at  the  door  of  the  colonel's 
residence,  and  Percy  ran  in. 

"You  cannot  enter  here,  fellow,"  a  servant  said,  as  he  was 
about  to  push  aside  the  hangings  of  the  entrance  to  the  private 
apartments. 

Percy  laughed,  and  without  waiting  to  explain  pushed  the 
man  aside  and  ran  in. 

"Well,  uncle,  here  I  am,"  he  exclaimed,  as  he  entered  the 
room  where  his  uncle  was  sitting  writing.  The  latter  leapt  to 
his  feet  with  a  cry  of  joy. 

"Why,  Percy,  is  it  you  in  this  disguise?  Welcome  back, 
my  boy,  a  thousand  times !  But  before  you  tell  me  anything, 


ESCAPE  231 

come  in  to  see  Mahtab,  who  has  been  downright  ill  from  grief 
since  Bhop  Lai  brought  in  the  news  of  your  being  carried  off 
by  dacoits." 

The  Ranee's  delight  at  seeing  Percy  was  unbounded,  and  it 
was  some  time  before  she  and  her  husband  could  sit  down 
quietly  and  listen  to  his  story. 

"All  is  well  that  ends  well,"  the  colonel  said  when  he  had 
brought  it  to  a  conclusion.  "You  have  had  a  bad  time  of  it, 
Percy;  but  I  doubt  if  your  aunt  and  I  have  not  had  a  worse. 
Of  course,  I  was  a  good  deal  troubled  when  I  heard  that  you 
were  carried  off;  but  as  to  that  Bhop  Lai  could  tell  us  noth- 
ing, having  been  shot  down  at  once,  and  so  hacked  that  he 
knew  nothing  of  what  took  place  until  he  was  revived  by  water 
being  poured  down  his  throat.  Three  traders  coming  along 
the  road  on  their  way  here  had  found  him,  and  as  soon  as 
they  learned  from  him  who  he  was  and  what  had  occurred, 
they  bandaged  his  wounds  and  had  him  carried  here  in  a 
dhoolie.  They  reported  that  they  had  seen  nothing  of  you, 
and  one  of  them  at  once  rode  back  with  me  with  a  troop  of 
horse  to  the  spot  where  they  had  found  your  man,  and  as, 
after  a  most  careful  search,  we  could  find  no  trace  of  blood, 
we  concluded  that  you  had  been  carried  off. 

"  We  followed  the  traces  of  the  band  for  some  distance,  but 
then  lost  them  just  as  it  was  becoming  dark.  As  they  had 
had  some  eight  hours'  start  of  us,  and  were  making  for  the 
mountains,  we  gave  up  the  pursuit  and  returned  here.  I 
made  sure  that  in  the  morning  I  should  receive  a  message 
from  the  rascal  demanding  a  ransom  for  you,  but  as  the  day 
went  on  I  became  more  uneasy,  as  the  idea  struck  me  that 
they  might  not  be  dacoits,  but  fellows  in  the  pay  of  Ghoolab. 
It  certainly  did  not  seem  likely  that  he  could  have  heard  that 
you  would  be  on  your  way  back;  but  his  men  might  have 
been  there  for  weeks,  for  he  would  gue*ss  that  when  the  war 
was  over  you  would  be  making  your  way  back  here  again. 

"  For  the  next  six  days  I  sent  out  parties  of  horsemen  all 


232  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

over  the  country,  but  could  obtain  no  news  whatever,  and  was 
getting  in  a  terrible  state  of  mind  when  a  man  rode  in  with  a 
letter  from  Ghoolab  Singh.  He  stated  that  he  had  learned 
that  you  were  in  the  power  of  dacoits  somewhere  among  the 
mountains.  He  said  that  it  would  be  a  long  and  difficult 
task  to  find  them,  but  that  he  would  use  every  effort  to  do  so, 
and  would  either  by  force  or  bribery  obtain  you  and  restore 
you  if  I,  on  my  part,  would  undertake  to  resign  the  govern- 
ment that  I  held  in  defiance  of  the  orders  of  the  durbar.  As 
a  rebel,  he  felt  that  he  should  not  be  justified  in  exerting 
himself  on  my  behalf,  but  if  I  would  submit  to  the  orders  of 
the  durbar  he  would  guarantee  that  my  past  conduct  should 
be  overlooked  and  that  you  should  be  restored  to  me.  I  had 
very  little  doubt  that  you  were  already  in  the  scoundrel's 
hands  when  he  sent  the  message,  but  in  any  case  I  saw  that  he 
had  me  on  the  hip.  I  don't  suppose  he  expected  a  direct 
answer  to  his  proposal,  and  he  did  not  get  one.  I  sent  an 
answer  back  that  I  was  ready  to  pay  any  reasonable  sum  for 
your  ransom;  but  as  for  resigning  my  governorship  and  hand- 
ing over  the  fortress,  I  wished  to  know  what  guarantee  he 
could  offer  that  I  should  be  permitted  to  retire  from  the 
Punjaub  in  safety  with  my  family  and  treasures.  To  that  I 
received  an  answer  that  he  was  ready  to  take  the  most  solemn 
pledge  for  my  safety,  and  that  he  was  sending  off  to  Lahore  to 
obtain  a  free  pardon  for  me  from  the  durbar,  and  a  permis- 
sion for  me  to  retire  with  all  my  family  and  as  many  of  my 
followers  as  might  wish  to  accompany  me  across  the  Sutlej. 
I  then  wrote  back  that  this  would  be  perfectly  satisfactory, 
but  that,  naturally,  I  should  require  that  you  should  be  handed 
over  to  me  prior  to  my  evacuating  the  fortress.  To  this  I 
received  no  answer.  I  thought  perhaps  he  was  waiting  for  a 
reply  from  Lahore,  but  I  now  understand  that  before  the 
messenger  returned  with  my  second  letter  you  had  already 
slipped  through  his  fingers.  I  should  have  liked  to  have  seen 
him  when  he  received  the  news  of  your  escape.  Now,  Percy, 


ESCAPE  233 

tell  us  all  about  your  adventures  since  you  left  us.  There 
was  no  believing  any  of  the  reports  that  reached  us  about  the 
various  battles.  I  know,  of  course,  that  the  Sikhs  must  have 
been  thoroughly  thrashed,  or  we  should  never  have  had  a 
British  occupation  of  Lahore.  Beyond  that  I  really  know 
nothing  for  certain." 

It  took  some  time  for  Percy  to  describe  all  the  military 
operations. 

"I  knew  that  it  would  be  so,"  the  colonel  said  gleefully 
when  he  concluded.  "  I  told  them  over  and  over  again  that 
if  they  thought,  because  they  had  won  victories  over  the 
Afghans  and  other  tribes,  that  they  were  a  match  for  the  Eng- 
lish they  were  completely  mistaken. 

"They  scoffed  at  the  idea  of  defeat;  but  now  they  find  that 
I  was  right,  and  so  was  old  Runjeet  Singh.  These  fellows 
have  plenty  of  courage  and  plenty  of  dash,  but  though  a  good 
many  thousand  have  been  drilled  in  our  fashion  they  cannot 
be  called  soldiers.  They  have  no  generals  and  no  officers  to 
speak  of,  and  when  it  came  to  fighting  they  would  be  nothing 
better  than  a  mob.  Still  our  fellows  must  have  fought  well 
to  turn  them  out  of  their  strong  intrenchments.  In  the  open 
field  I  had  no  doubt  whatever  as  to  the  result,  but  behind 
earthworks  discipline  does  not  go  for  much,  and  a  brave  fel- 
low who  is  a  good  shot  counts  for  nearly  as  much  as  a  trained 
soldier.  Now  you  may  as  well  get  yourself  into  decent 
clothes  again,  Percy,  and  while  you  are  doing  that  I  will  go 
out  and  see  your  man,  and  tell  him  that  I  am  well  pleased 
with  his  conduct,  and  that  he  and  his  comrade  shall  both  be 
well  rewarded  for  the  dangers  they  have  passed  through." 

In  the  evening  Percy  went  more  into  details,  and  the  colo- 
nel was  highly  pleased  to  hear  that  he  had  attracted  the 
attention  of  the  heads  of  the  army,  and  that  the  governor- 
general  himself  had  promised  to  apply  at  once  for  a  civil 
appointment  for  him. 

"What  are  you  thinking  of  doing,  uncle?  " 


234  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

"  I  shall  hold  on,  Percy.  You  say  there  is  to  be  a  British 
Resident  at  Lahore,  and  that  probably  troops  will  remain 
there  permanently,  in  which  I  agree  with  you,  for  it  is  mor- 
ally certain  that  if  the  maharanee  and  her  son  are  making 
peace  with  us  and  surrendering  the  Jalindar  Doab,  they  would 
be  turned  out  and  probably  massacred  the  moment  the  troops 
retired.  Well,  with  an  English  Resident  there,  and  being 
to  a  great  extent  under  British  protection,  and  having  besides 
no  regular  army,  Lahore  will  be  glad  enough  to  let  me  alone. 
So  there  is  only  Ghoolab.  He  is  not  very  certain  of  his  posi- 
tion yet,  and  I  have  no  doubt  he  knows  as  well  as  we  do  that 
before  long  there  will  be  another  war,  which  will  end  in  our 
people  annexing  the  whole  of  the  Punjaub.  I  think,"  there- 
fore, that  there  is  no  chance  of  his  trying  again  to  take  this 
place  by  force.  He  may,  of  course,  and  I  daresay  he  will, 
try  assassination  again,  but  I  shall  be  on  my  guard." 

"  I  think,  uncle,  there  ought  to  be  more  care  at  the  gate. 
We  came  in  without  being  questioned,  and  we  might,  for 
aught  the  guard  knew,  have  been  two  men  sent  by  Ghoolab 
to  assassinate  you.  I  think  that  every  man  coming  into  the 
place  ought  to  be  questioned  as  to  his  busines." 

"  But  they  would  lie,  my  boy.  What  is  the  use  of  ques- 
tioning?" 

"Ah!  but  I  would  not  let  them  in,  uncle,  unless  they  could 
prove  that  they  had  business  with  some  person  living  in  the 
fort.  You  are  not  recruiting  now,  and  if  you  were  you  could 
get  plenty  of  men  well  known  in  the  district.  I  don't  say 
that  you  could  keep  assassins  out,  whatever  the  means  you 
adopt;  but  I  do  think  that  if  it  were  known  in  the  district 
that  no  one  is  admitted  within  the  walls  until  after  he  has 
given  a  satisfactory  account. of  himself,  Ghoolab  would  find 
it  more  difficult  to  get  men  to  undertake  so  hazardous  a  busi- 
ness." 

As  the  Ranee  thoroughly  agreed  with  Percy  the  colonel 
consented  to  make  more  rigid  rules,  although  still  maintain- 


ESCAPE  235 

ing  his  opinion  that  no  precautions  of  the  sort  would  be  of 
the  slightest  avail  in  keeping  a  determined  man  from  enter- 
ing the  place. 

The  next  morning  another  horseman  came  in  from  Ghoolab. 

The  colonel  laughed  as  he  read  the  letter  he  had  brought. 

"The  old  fox  still  hopes  to  catch  you  again,  Percy;  he 
simply  continues  negotiations,  and  asks  what  guarantee  I  can 
offer  on  my  part  that  I  will  retire  from  the  fortress  if  you  are, 
as  I  demand,  given  up  to  me  before  I  surrender.  I  will  put 
him  out  of  his  agony." 

So  the  colonel  wrote  a  short  note  to  the  effect  that  his 
nephew  had  returned,  and  having  informed  him  who  was  the 
brigand  into  whose  hands  he  had  fallen,  there  was  no  longer 
any  need  for  any  further  negotiations  on  the  subject. 

"You  must  be  doubly  careful  now,  Roland,"  the  Ranee  said 
when  her  husband  told  her  what  he  had  written  to  Ghoolab. 
"  He  has  always  been  your  bitter  enemy,  but  he  will  be  more 
so  than  ever  now.  I  do  beg  that  you  will  again  have  that 
guard  you  had  during  the  siege,  and  that  you  will  have  the 
two  men  who  have  proved  so  faithful  to  Percy  to  sleep  always 
at  the  entrance  to  our  apartments." 

"I  hate  being  guarded,"  the  colonel  said;  "still,  if  it  will 
make  you  more  comfortable,  of  course  it  shall  be  as  you 
wish." 

When  the  officers  of  the  garrison  understood  that  Ghoolab 
had  again  been  foiled,  there  was  a  general  opinion  that  too 
great  precautions  for  the  colonel's  safety  could  hardly  be 
taken. 

The  watch  at  the  gate  was  carried  out  most  vigilantly,  for 
the  colonel  was  so  much  beloved  by  his  men  that  each  con- 
sidered himself  personally  responsible  for  his  safety,  and 
whatever  might  be  the  story  told  by  strangers  arriving  at  the 
gate,  they  were  not  allowed  to  pass  until  the  trader  or  other 
person  they  wished  to  see  was  brought  down  to  the  gate  to 
vouch  for  the  truth  of  the  statement. 


236  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

During  the  next  three  months  seven  or  eight  men  whose 
story  proved  to  be  false  were  seized  and  imprisoned.  The 
officers  were  all  in  favour  of  applying  torture  to  them  to 
extract  the  truth,  but  the  colonel  would  not  hear  of  it. 

"  I  will  have  no  one  tortured  in  my  district.  Such  a  thing 
has  never  been  done  to  my  knowledge  since  I  was  appointed 
governor  ten  years  ago,  and  I  won't  have  it  begun  now.  In 
the  second  place,  you  cannot  depend  in  the  slightest  upon 
anything  that  may  be  told  under  torture.  And  lastly,  if  I 
knew  it  for  certain,  as  I  think  it  probable,  that  they  were 
agents  of  Ghoolab,  I  should  really  be  none  the  wiser.  They 
came  here  with  a  false  story,  and,  therefore,  for  no  good 
purpose.  Consequently  they  should  be  punished.  Therefore, 
let  each  man  who  is  convicted  of  lying  be  kept  for  a  week  in 
the  cells ;  then  give  him  a  sound  flogging,  shave  off  his  hair, 
moustache,  and  beard,  and  turn  him  out.  That  will  be  quite 
enough  to  deter  other  people  from  following  his  example." 

This  decision  met  with  general  approval,  and  was  in  each 
case  carried  into  effect,  the  shaven  men  being  turned  out  from 
the  gates  amid  the  gibes  and  jeers  of  the  soldiers,  with  many 
threats  of  what  would  happen  if  they  were  again  found  in  the 
neighbourhood. 

Six  months  after  his  return  to  the  fortress  Percy  received  a 
letter  (forwarded  to  him  by  Mr.  Henry  Lawrence,  the  Resident 
at  Lahore,  from  the  Court  of  Directors),  saying  that  in  accord- 
ance with  the  very  strong  recommendation  of  the  governor- 
general  he  had  been  appointed  to  the  Civil  Service  of  the 
Company  on  the  date  of  his  attaining  his  nineteenth  birthday, 
that  a  note  had  also  been  made  of  his  willingness  to  serve  at 
an  earlier  period  if  required,  and  that  instructions  had  been 
given  to  that  effect  to  the  Resident  at  Lahore,  who  was  author- 
ized to  employ  him  if  required,  in  which  case  his  appointment 
would  date  from  the  day  of  his  commencing  service. 

The  time  passed  pleasantly  to  Percy.  He  rode,  practised 
shooting  and  sword  exercise,  and  worked  for  several  hours  a 


ESCAPE 


day  at  the  Pathan  language,  in  which,  by  the  end  of  eighteen 
months,  he  had  become  almost  as  efficient  as  in  Punjaubi, 
for,  there  being  several  Afghans  among  the  officers,  he  was 
enabled  to  learn  it  colloquially.  At  the  end  of  that  time  he 
wrote  to  the  Resident  at  Lahore  saying  that  he  was  now  well 
up  in  Pathan,  and  thought  it  right  to  inform  him  of  this  in 
case  any  occasion  should  arise  for  the  use  of  his  services  on 
the  northern  frontier. 

Six  months  later  he  received  a  letter  from  Sir  Philip  Currie, 
who  had  just  succeeded  Mr.  Lawrence  as  Resident,  stating  that 
he  had  been  requested  by  Mr.  Agnew,  who  was  going  as  politi- 
cal officer  to  Mooltan,  to  furnish  him  with  an  assistant  capable 
of  speaking  both  Punjaubi  and  Pathan  fluently.  The  Resident 
added  that  from  what  he  had  heard  of  Mr.  Groves'  conduct 
during  the  campaign,  and  from  the  strong  manner  in  which 
the  governor-general  had  personally  recommended  him  to  the 
Court  of  Directors,  and  the  very  favourable  terms  in  which  his 
friend  Mr.  Fullarton  had  more  than  once  spoken  of  him,  he 
would  be  well  fitted  to  undertake  the  duties  of  assistant  to  Mr. 
Agnew.  Having  been  authorized  by  the  Court  of  Directors 
to  appoint  him  at  any  time  to  a  post  where  his  services  might 
be  useful,  he  had  therefore  much  pleasure  in  now  nominating 
him  Mr.  Agnew'  s  assistant. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

TREACHERY 

BHOP  LAL  and  his  comrade  were  delighted  when  they  heard 
that  Percy  was  again  going  off,  and  that,  as  before,  they 
were  to  accompany  him  as  his  servants. 

"There  will  be  no  fighting  or  adventures  this  time,"  Percy 
said.  "  I  expect  your  life  will  be  just  as  quiet  there  as  it  is 
here.  Still  it  will  be  a  change,  and  I  suppose  that  sometimes 
I  shall  have  to  ride  out  from  Mooltan  to  see  people  in  the  dis- 
trict. Your  being  a  Pathan  will  be  a  great  advantage,  Bhop 
Lai,  on  this  occasion,  just  as  Akram  Chunder's  being  a  native 
of  Cashmere  got  me  out  of  a  bad  scrape  last  time.  As  a 
Pathan  you  will  be  able  to  gather  intelligence,  as  the  popula- 
tion is  largely  composed  of  your  countrymen.  Of  course,  on 
your  journey  you  will  take  your  arms  with  you,  but  you  will 
have  no  occasion  for  them  there  as  the  followers  of  a  peaceable 
civil  servant." 

"Arms  are  always  useful,"  Akram  Chunder  said.  "The 
Pathans  are  quarrelsome  fellows,  though  Bhop  Lai  is  an 
exception.  The  population  of  Mooltan  are  said  to  be  the 
most  turbulent  of  those  of  any  town  in  the  Punjaub.  You 
will  miss  your  horse,  sahib.  I  suppose  it  is  in  Ghoolab  Singh's 
stables.  The  one  you  ride  now  is  a  good  one,  but  not  so  good 
as  Sultan." 

"  My  uncle  has  just  given  me  Sheik.  He  says  it  will  be 
more  useful  to  me  than  to  him.." 

238 


TREACHERY  239 

"Then,  sahib,  you  need  never  fear  being  caught  when  you 
are  once  on  his  back.  Even  with  the  colonel's  weight  there 
is  not  a  horse  in  the  district  can  touch  him,  and  with  you  in 
the  saddle  he  will  go  like  the  wind." 

Before  starting  Colonel  Groves  presented  the  two  men  with 
horses  of  his  own  breeding. 

"  Without  being  comparable  with  Sheik,  they  are  powerful 
and  well-bred  horses,  fast,  and  capable  of  accomplishing  long 
journeys.  As  I  know  you  will  serve  my  nephew  as  well  and 
faithfully  as  you  did  last  time,  I  shall  never  regret  having 
parted  with  the  horses,"  he  said  to  them.  "One  or  other  of 
you  will  always  be  with  him,  and  it  is  useless  for  a  master  to 
be  well  mounted  if  his  followers  cannot  keep  pace  with  him. 
I  do  not  say  that  either  of  these  horses  could  keep  up  with 
Sheik  if  he  were  pressed,  but  at  least  you  will  find  few  that 
can  go  faster." 

The  men  were  overjoyed  with  the  present.  The  Sikhs,  like 
the  Indian  irregular  cavalry,  provided  their  own  horses  and 
equipments,  and  it  was  a  matter  of  personal  pride  to  be  well 
mounted.  To  be  the  possessors  of  animals  like  these,  uniting 
the  hardiness  of  the  native  horse  with  the  power  and  speed  of 
their  English  sire,  was  an  unhoped-for  pleasure,  and  they 
expressed  their  thanks  in  the  warmest  terms. 

As  it  was  evident  that  Mr.  Agnew  would  very  shortly  be 
leaving  for  Mooltan,  and  that  therefore  speed  was  necessary, 
Percy  and  his  two  men  started  at  daylight  next  morning  and 
rode  by  long  stages  down  to  Lahore. 

Until  the  last  halt  before  reaching  the  city  Percy  had  ridden 
in  native  dress,  as,  although  things  had  now  settled  down  a 
good  deal,  the  feeling  was  as  strong  as  ever  against  the  British, 
who  still,  at  the  earnest  request  of  the  maharanee  and  the 
durbar,  maintained  a  force  at  Lahore  to  support  the  young 
maharajah's  authority.  It  was,  therefore,  advisable  to  avoid 
attention  until  they  reached  the  capital.  As  soon  as  they 
arrived  there  Percy  rode  to  the  Residency. 


240  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

"I  am  glad  you  have  come,  Mr.  Groves,"  the  Resident  said 
as  he  was  ushered  into  the  study.  "  You  must  have  come 
down  fast  indeed.  I  told  my  messenger  to  carry  my  note  as 
quickly  as  he  could,  but  I  hardly  fancied  that  you  could  have 
been  down  for  another  three  days;  and  Mr.  Agnew  starts 
to-morrow,  so  you  are  just  in  time." 

"You  did  not  mention  in  your  letter,  sir,  the  day  on  which 
he  would  set  out;  but  I  came  down  as  rapidly  as  I  could  in 
order  to  catch  him  here  if  possible."  At  this  moment  a 
gentleman  in  civilian  dress,  with  a  young  officer,  entered  the 
room.  They  hesitated  on  seeing  that  the  Resident  was 
engaged. 

"Come  in,  Mr.  Agnew,"  Sir  Frederick  Currie  said.  "This 
is  Mr.  Groves.  He  has  come  down  post-haste  to  take  up  his 
appointment  as  your  assistant." 

"  I  am  very  glad  that  you  have  arrived  in  time,  Mr.  Groves. 
I  have  learnt  a  good  deal  about  you  from  the  memorandum 
handed  over  to  Sir  Frederick  by  his  predecessor,  and  shall 
be  very  glad  to  have  your  assistance.  This  is  Lieutenant 
Anderson  of  the  ist  Bombay  Fusiliers,  who  also  accompanies 
me.  We  will  leave  Sir  Frederick  to  his  work  at  present  and 
talk  over  matters.  I  need  not  ask  if  you  are  well  mounted," 
he  went  on  when  they  were  seated  in  another  room;  "the 
speed  with  which  you  have  come  down  shows  that.  Are  there 
any  preparations  you  want  to  make  in  the  way  of  hiring 
servants?  " 

"  I  have  two  excellent  men,  sir.  They  were  with  my  uncle 
for  many  years,  and  accompanied  me  through  the  last  cam- 
paign. They  are  thoroughly  trustworthy,  are  up  to  their  work 
in  every  way,  and  have  plenty  of  courage." 

"You  are  fortunate,  Mr.  Groves,  in  getting  two  such  men. 
Sikh  servants  as  a  rule  are  not  to  be  depended  upon,  especially 
in  any  trouble  with  their  countrymen;  while  servants  from 
other  parts  of  India  are  of  little  use  here  from  their  ignorance 
of  the  language;  Do  you  know  anything  in  reference  to  the 
situation  at  Mooltan?" 


TREACHERY      ,  241 

"Nothing,  sir.  I  know,  of  course,  that  Moolraj's  conduct 
was  very  doubtful  during  the  last  campaign,  and  that  it  was 
considered  probable  he  would  have  attacked  General  Napier's 
force  coming  from  Scinde  had  it  not  been  too  strong  to  be 
meddled  with.  I  do  not  know  anything  more  than  that." 

"As  you  know  he  succeeded  his  father  as  Dewan  of  Mooltan, 
and  in  fact  of  all  the  country  beyond  the  Jhelum,  in  1844. 
He  nominally  remained  neutral,  but  there  was  very  little 
doubt  that  he  would  have  taken  part  in  the  war  had  he  seen 
his  opportunity,  and  would  have  joined  the  Sikhs  with  every 
man  he  could  put  in  the  field  on  the  condition  that  when  we 
were  crushed  his  government  should  be  altogether  independent 
of  that  of  Lahore.  The  passage  of  General  Napier's  army 
overawed  him  at  that  time.  He  had  promised  to  pay  to 
Lahore  a  large  sum  of  money  in  return  for  the  confirmation 
by  the  durbar  of  his  succession  to  his  father's  office;  but  when 
once  firmly  established  in  it  he  declined  to  pay  the  stipulated 
amount,  and  with  the  army  in  a  state  of  mutiny  the  durbar  was 
unable  to  compel  him  to  do  so;  nor  had  he  paid  the  regular 
revenue  of  the  province. 

"  Accordingly  one  of  the  first  measures  of  the  durbar  after 
things  had  settled  down  at  the  end  of  our  campaign  was  to 
send  a  force  against  him.  Moolraj,  however,  completely 
defeated  it.  Henry  Lawrence  then  acted  as  mediator,  and 
matters  were  arranged  on  the  basis  that  Moolraj  should  pay 
up  a  considerable  amount  of  arrears,  and  should,  for  three 
years  from  last  autumn,  pay  a  fixed  sum  annually.  Last 
November  he  paid  a  visit  here,  and  expressed  to  John  Law- 
rence, who  had  succeeded  his  brother  Henry  as  Resident,  that 
he  wished  to  give  up  his  position  as  Dewan  of  Mooltan  and 
its  province,  his  reason  being  that  by  the  new  arrangement 
the  people  under  his  government  had  the  right  of  appeal  to 
Lahore,  which  interfered  greatly  with  his  power  of  taxation. 

"  Lawrence  recommended  him  not  to  carry  out  his  deter- 
mination; but  he  insisted  on  sending  in  his  resignation  to  the 


\\  • 

f^     242  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

durbar.  They  at  first  refused  it,  but  after  some  negotiations 
it  was  accepted  on  the  understanding  that  it  should,  for  a 
time,  remain  secret.  When,  six  months  later,  in  the  beginning 
of  March,  1848,  Mr.  Lawrence  was  about  to  give  up  his  post 
to  Sir  Frederick  Currie,  the  former  wrote  to  Moolraj  saying 
that  if  he  wished  to  reconsider  his  resignation  he  had  now  the 
opportunity  of  withdrawing  it.  Upon  his  reply  that  he  had 
not  changed  his  mind,  Sir  Frederick  took  the  matter  up  and 
laid  it  before  the  durbar,  who  had  hitherto,  in  accordance  with 
the  agreement  between  Lawrence  and  Moolraj,  remained  in 
ignorance  that  the  latter  had  persisted  in  giving  in  his  resigna- 
tion. The  durbar,  who  I  have  no  doubt  were  glad  enough  to 
be  rid  of  a  governor  whose  power  and  ambition  rendered  him 
very  formidable,  accepted  the  resignation,  and  have  appointed 
Khan  Singh  in  his  place.  He  sets  out  to-morrow  with  us  for 
his  new  government.  We  take  with  us  as  our  escort  a  regi- 
ment composed  of  Ghoorkas  in  the  Sikh  pay  six  hundred 
strong,  about  the  same  number  of  Lahore  Sikh  cavalry,  and  a 
battery  of  native  artillery. 

"Such  a  force  as  this  is  not,  of  course,  required  for  our 
protection  on  the  road,  but  is  intended  as  a  garrison  for 
Mooltan,  where,  for  aught  we  know,  the  people  may  view  the 
change  of  governors  with  disapprobation.  You  know  yourself, 
Mr.  Groves,"  he  added  with  a  smile,  "that  governors  are  not 
always  amenable  to  orders  from  Lahore." 

Percy  laughed.  "That  is  true,  sir;  I  believe  it  is  often  the 
case.  My  uncle  often  said  he  would  give  up  the  governorship 
as  soon  as  a  maharajah  with  power  to  keep  order  was  firmly 
seated  on  the  throne;  but  to  have  given  it  over  when  there 
was  neither  law  nor  order  would  have  been  to  have  given  up 
his  life  as  well  as  the  fortress.  He  has  always  recognized  the 
authority  of  the  durbar  in  all  other  matters,  and  has  sent  the 
revenues  in  regularly,  deducting  only  the  actual  amount  of  pay 
given  to  his  troops  and  his  own  pay  as  governor,  according  to 
the  terms  of  his  appointment  by  Runjeet  Singh." 


TREACHERY  243 

"Yes;  I  am  aware  that  he  has  done  so,"  Mr.  Agnew  said. 
"The  matter  was  brought  up  at  the  first  durbar  I  attended,  by 
one  of  Ghoolab  Singh's  party,  and  I  was  asked  whether  I 
would  give  my  approval  to  a  force  being  sent  against  your 
uncle;  but  as  both  the  I^awrences  strongly  protested  against 
civil  war  when  the  matter  was  brought  before  them  one  after 
the  other,  I  threw  my  weight  altogether  against  such  a  proj- 
ect, especially  at  the  present  time  when  there  will  be  trouble 
at  Mooltan.  But,  indeed,  the  majority  of  the  durbar  were 
equally  opposed  to  any  action  being  taken,  first  upon  the 
ground  that  the  revenue  was  punctually  paid  by  Colonel 
Groves,  which  was  much  more  than  could  be  said  for  most  of 
the  other  sirdars;  and  in  the  second  place,  because  the  fort  had 
already  repulsed  an  attack  by  fifteen  thousand  of  the  regulars, 
or  as  they  call  them  Khalsa  troops,  with  great  loss,  and  that 
another  attempt  might  prove  equally  disastrous.  But  at  bot- 
tom I  think  the  real  reason  for  the  opposition  to  the  pro- 
posal was  that,  were  your  uncle  to  be  succeeded  by  Ghoolab 
Singh's  son,  the  district  would  virtually  become  part  of  Cash- 
mere, and  Ghoolab 's  power  is  already  much  too  great  and 
threatening.  From  the  instructions  left  by  the  two  Lawrences 
for  the  guidance  of  their  successors,  I  know  that  upon  this 
ground  alone,  if  upon  no  other,  they  opposed  any  operation 
that  would  tend  to  increase  Ghoolab  Singh's  dangerous 
authority." 

"At  what  time  do  we  mount  to-morrow,  Mr.  Agnew?" 

"We  do  not  mount  at  all.  Our  party,  with  our  servants 
and  baggage,  will  go  down  the  river  in  boats.  The  troops 
will  march,  and  we  shall  join  each  other  at  the  Eedgah,  a 
mile  or  so  from  the  fort  of  Mooltan.  There  will  be  a  boat 
for  ourselves,  one  for  our  servants  and  baggage,  and  a  flat  for 
our  horses." 

"That  will  be  much  more  pleasant,  sir,  than  a  march 
through  the  heat.  I  enjoyed  my  journey  up  from  Calcutta 
by  water  very  much  indeed. " 


244  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

The  journey  was  performed  by  easy  stages,  as  the  rate  of 
travel  by  the  boats  had  to  be  timed  by  that  of  the  troops;  but 
on  the  1 8th  of  April  they  arrived  at  the  Eedgah,  a  spacious 
Mohammedan  building,  round  which  the  troops  had  already 
pitched  their  camp.  Upon  the  journey  Percy  had  been  able 
to  be  of  considerable  service  to  the  party  in  their  communica- 
tions with  the  natives  at  the  various  points  at  which  they 
stopped.  Mr.  Agnew  and  Lieutenant  Anderson  had  both 
some  knowledge  of  the  language,  but  were  unable  to  converse 
with  anything  like  the  facility  that  he  had  attained.  Mr. 
Agnew  had  with  him  several  moons  his  to  translate  for  him  and 
to  act  as  clerks.  The  conversation  in  the  boat  had  naturally 
turned  upon  the  subject  of  Moolraj's  probable  course. 

"I  am  wholly  unable  to  understand,"  Mr.  Agnew  said,  the 
first  time  the  matter  was  discussed,  "what  the  man's  object 
is  in  resigning  the  governorship.  It  is,  of  course,  less  profit- 
able than  it  was,  owing  in  the  first  place  to  certain  districts 
being  taken  from  his  jurisdiction,  and  in  the  second,  because 
the  right  of  appeal  to  Lahore  by  persons  who  consider  them- 
selves oppressed  renders  it  impossible  for  him  to  carry  his 
exactions  to  so  great  an  extent  as  before.  Had  Moolraj  been 
a  peace-loving  man  I  should  understand  his  resigning  an  office 
he  considered  no  longer  profitable;  but  he  is  an  ambitious 
one,  and  has  always  been  credited  with  the  desire  and  inten- 
tion of  one  day  making  himself  independent  of  Lahore,  just 
as  Ghoolab  has  done.  His  natural  course  would  have  been  to 
announce  that  he  could  not  afford  to  pay  so  heavy  a  sum 
annually,  and  to  declare  that  if  pressed  he  should  defend  him- 
self; especially  as,  on  the  last  occasion,  he  defeated  the 
troops  sent  from  Lahore.  Resignation  means  the  annihilation 
of  his  hopes,  and  a  descent  from  the  rank  of  dewan  to  that  of 
a  sirdar  of  no  great  consideration.  His  conduct  is  an  entire 
mystery  to  me.  It  is  the  very  last  thing  one  would  have  ex- 
pected from  a  man  of  his  character.  If  it  had  only  been 
decided  in  a  moment  of  irritation  I  could  have  understood 


TREACHERY  245 

it;  but  it  is  six  months  since  he  first  sent  in  his  resignation; 
he  has  again  and  again  had  opportunities  of  withdrawing,  but 
has  persisted  in  resigning.  What  do  you  think,  Khan 
Singh?" 

"I  can  understand  it  no  more  than  you  can,  sahib,"  the 
new  dewan  replied.  "I  do  not  see  what  design  he  could 
have  in  thus  maintaining  his  resignation  if  he  did  not  intend 
to  carry  it  out." 

"That  is  the  point,"  Mr.  Agnew  said  thoughtfully.  "If  he 
wanted  to  raise  the  flag  of  rebellion  he  could  have  done  so  at 
any  time,  for  they  say  that  his  troops  are  well  paid  and  de- 
voted to  him." 

"  If  he  never  meant  all  along  to  resign,"  Lieutenant  Ander- 
son remarked,  "  it  seems  to  me  that  he  could  only  have  pre- 
tended to  do  so  in  the  hope  that  the  durbar  would  send  a 
considerable  force  with  his  successor,  and  yet  something  less 
than  an  army,  in  which  case  he  might  have  surprised  and 
destroyed  it,  and  thus  have  scored  a  material  and  moral 
success  to  begin  with.  He  would  scarcely  have  calculated 
upon  his  successor  being  accompanied  by  three  British 
officers." 

"That  does  seem  a  feasible  explanation,  Anderson.  No 
doubt  in  that  case  our  coming  up  with  twelve  hundred  troops 
and  a  battery  will  have  altogether  destroyed  his  calculations, 
for  although  he  might  feel  himself  strong  enough  to  defy 
Lahore,  now  that  the  resources  of  the  government  are  so 
diminished,  he  would  never  be  mad  enough  to  think  that  he 
could  oppose  with  the  remotest  hope  of  success  the  power  of 
England." 

Upon  the  morning  after  their  arrival  at  Eedgah,  Moolraj 
rode  in  with  a  small  party  of  his  officers  and  had  an  interview 
with  Mr.  Agnew.  He  expressed  his  satisfaction  that  his  suc- 
cessor had  arrived,  and  that  he  should  now  be  relieved  of  a 
government  that  was  burdensome  to  him.  He  said  that  he 
would  return  in  the  afternoon,  when  he  would  inform  them  of 


246  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

the  arrangements  he  had  made  for  handing  over  the  fort  on 
the  following  morning.  This  promise  he  fulfilled,  and  the 
arrangements  were  then  completed  for  the  fort  to  be  trans- 
ferred to  Khan  Singh  early  the  next  morning,  Moolraj  saying 
that  he  himself  would  be  present  to  see  that  matters  went  off 
smoothly. 

That  evening  when  Percy  went  to  his  room  he  found  his 
two  men  waiting  for  him  there. 

"What  are  you  sitting  up  for?"  he  asked.  "You  know  I 
never  want  you  after  dinner." 

"We  wanted  to  speak  to  you,  sahib,"  Bhop  Lai  said.  "Is 
it  true  that  the  fort  is  to  be  handed  over  to-morrow  morning 
to  Khan  Singh?" 

"  It  is  quite  true,  Bhop  Lai ;  the  arrangements  have  all  been 
made  with  Moolraj  this  afternoon." 

"And  will  you  go  into  the  fort  with  Khan  Singh,  sahib?  " 

"  No.  Mr.  Agnew  and  Lieutenant  Anderson  are  going  with 
him;  and  as  there  are  arrangements  to  be  made  for  the  pur- 
chase of  provisions  for  the  troops,  and  other  matters,  Mr. 
Agnew  asked  me  to  remain  here." 

"That  is  a  comfort  indeed,  sahib." 

"Why  so?     Do  you  think  there  is  going  to  be  trouble?  " 

"I  don't  know  that  there  will  be  trouble  to-morrow,  sahib; 
I  cannot  say  what  the  plans  of  Moolraj  are;  but  there  is  going 
to  be  trouble.  You  told  me  this  morning  to  try  and  find  out 
the  sentiments  of  the  people,  so  I  dressed  myself  as  a  peasant 
and  went  boldly  into  the  town.  Everyone  there  thinks  there 
will  be  fighting.  They  say  the  troops  will  never  accept  Khan 
Singh  as  their  dewan  instead  of  Moolraj,  and  the  budmashes 
^  of  the  city  all  seem  to  be  of  the  same  opinion. 

"They  are  not,  they  say,  going  to  submit,  like  the  people 
of  Lahore,  to  be  governed  by  a  man  who  is  but  a  servant  of 
the  Feringhees.  What  they  will  do  I  don't  know,  but  the 
place  is  all  in  an  uproar,  and  I  greatly  fear  there  will  be 
trouble.  Now  that  we  know  you  are  going  to  remain  here,  we 


TREACHERY  247 

shall  no  longer  be  anxious.  The  Ghoorkas  and  the  guns  can 
defend  the  place  if  the  Sikh  cavalry  go  over,  and  at  any  rate 
we  will  have  Sheik  and  our  own  horses  saddled  and  in  readi- 
ness either  for  fighting  or  flight." 

The  next  morning,  as  soon  as  Mr.  Agnew  was  up,  Percy 
went  to  him  and  told  him  what  he  had  learned  from  Bhop 
Lai.  The  officer,  however,  made  light  of  it.  "  All  that  was, 
of  course,  to  be  expected,  Mr.  Groves.  Soldiers  may  grumble 
when  a  leader  who  has  paid  and  fed  them  well  is  removed ; 
but  one  must  not  take  their  grumbling  in  earnest.  As  soon 
as  they  learn  that  they  will  not  be  disbanded,  but  that  their 
new  dewan  will  take  them  all  into  his  service  and  will  treat 
them  well  and  liberally,  they  will  soon  be  contented  enough. 
As  to  the  rabble  of  the  town,  no  doubt  they  would  be  ready 
enough  for  any  mischief,  providing  the  troops  were  with 
them ;  but  as  soon  as  they  learn  that  the  fort  has  been  handed 
over  and  that  the  troops  have  accepted  Khan  Singh  as  their 
dewan,  they  will  know  better  than  to  give  trouble.  Moolraj 
is  going  with  us  to  the  fort,  and  his  influence  will  easily  bring 
the  troops  to  a  better  frame  of  mind." 

Percy  had  so  much  confidence  in  Bhop  Lai,  and  the  latter 
was  so  evidently  convinced  there  was  danger  of  serious  trouble, 
that  he  by  no  means  shared  Mr.  Agnew's  sanguine  anticipa- 
tion that  all  would  pass  off  well.  He  felt,  however,  that  it 
would  be  altogether  out  of  place  for  him,  a  newly-joined 
assistant,  to  urge  his  opinion  against  that  of  Mr.  Agnew,  and 
he  therefore  merely  bowed  and  said : 

"Very  well,  sir,  I  hope  that  it  will  .all  go  off  well,  and  that 
your  anticipations  as  to  the  troops  accepting  Khan  Singh  will 
be  realized." 

An  hour  later  Moolraj,  with  a  number  of  officers,  rode  up 
to  the  Eedgah.  Mr.  Agnew,  Lieutenant  Anderson,  and  Khan 
Singh  mounted,  and  started  with  the  two  companies  of 
Ghoorkas  who  were  to  be  placed  in  possession  of  the  fort. 
Still  feeling  extremely  uneasy,  Percy  first  looked  to  the  prim- 


248  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

ing  of  his  pistols,  placed  them  and  his  sword  in  readiness 
near  the  table  at  which  he  was  sitting,  and  then  proceeded  to 
interview  the  natives  who  came  in  offering  to  furnish  supplies 
of  grain,  forage,  and  other  provisions.  An  hour  and  half 
elapsed,  and  then  Akram  Chunder  came  in. 

"Is  anything  the  matter,  Akram?" 

"  I  don't  know,  sahib.  I  have  been  on  the  roof  of  the  house 
looking  towards  the  fort,  and  it  seemed  to  me  half  an  hour 
since  that  there  was  a  sudden  confusion  at  the  bridge  over  the 
ditch.  There  were  a  number  of  men  gathered  round  there, 
and  directly  afterwards  I  saw  a  group  of  horsemen,  I  think 
Moolraj  and  his  officers,  gallop  away  towards  the  city.  Then 
presently  I  saw  an  elephant  with  a  few  footmen  coming  this 
way,  but  no  signs  of  the  white  sahibs.  The  elephant  is  com- 
ing hither,  and  I  can  see  by  the  trappings  that  it  belongs  to  a 
person  of  importance.  Will  you  call  the  troops  under  arms, 
sahib?  " 

"No;  I  can't  do  that  until  I  know  something  definite.  As 
likely  as  not  they  will  refuse  to  take  orders  from  me.  Besides, 
there  can  be  no  danger  from  this  elephant  and  a  handful  of 
footmen,  and  if  all  is  well  Mr.  Agnew  would  naturally  be  very 
indignant  at  my  interference." 

Putting  his  pistols  in  his  coat  pockets  and  taking  his  sword 
in  his  hand,  Percy  went  to  the  door.  The  elephant  was  now 
but  two  or  three  hundred  yards  distant,  but  a  native  who  had 
run  on  ahead  was  close  at  hand. 

"My  master,  Rung  Ram,  brother  of  the  Dewan  Moolraj, 
sends  his  greeting.  The  white  officer  is  badly  hurt,  and  he  is 
bringing  him  hither;  he  and  Khan  Singh  have  themselves 
bound  up  his  wounds  as  they  brought  him  along  in  the 
howdah." 

Percy  at  once  called  the  servants  to  the  door  and  then  hur- 
ried forward  to  meet  the  coming  party,  anxious  to  discover 
which  officer  it  was  that  had  been  wounded.  When  he  came 
up  with  them  he  saw  Mr.  Agnew  supported  in  his  seat  by 


'IS    IIK    DEAD?"    1'KRCY    ASKED    AS    HE  REINED    UP    HIS    HORSE. 


TREACHERY  249 

Rung  Ram  and  Khan  Singh.  He  was  conscious,  and  leaning 
forward  said  to  Percy: 

"Order  the  troops  under  arms  at  once,  Mr.  Groves." 

Percy  hurried  away  to  the  camp,  and  in  two  minutes  the 
trumpets  were  calling  to  arms  and  the  men  hurrying  out  from 
their  tents,  surprised  at  this  sudden  summons.  As  soon  as  he 
saw  that  the  troops  were  falling  in,  Percy  returned  to  the 
house.  Mr.  Agnew  had  been  carried  into  his  room  and  laid 
on  the  couch. 

"  You  were  right,  Mr.  Groves,  and  I  regret  that  I  did  not 
treat  the  warning  you  gave  me  as  one  of  importance.  Sit 
down,  please,  and  take  pen  and  paper.  I  must  send  off  a 
despatch  at  once  to  Sir  Frederick  Currie.  I  am  too  weak  to 
talk  much,  and  you  will  learn  what  has  happened  from  the 
despatch  I  dictate  to  you." 

Percy  was  about  to  begin  when  Bhop  Lai  entered. 

"There  are  a  party  of  Ghoorkas  carrying  a  litter  approach- 
ing, sahib." 

"Go  out  at  once,  Mr.  Groves,  and  see  if  it  is  Anderson 
they  are  bringing  in.  I  did  not  know  what  had  become  of 
him,  and  am  most  anxious  concerning  his  fate." 

"Your  horse  is  ready,  sahib,"  Bhop  Lai  said  as  Percy  hur- 
ried out. 

"  Bring  it  round  at  once,  and  mount  your  own  and  ride  with 
me." 

The  party  were  still  but  half-way  between  the  fort  and  the 
Eedgah  when  Percy  started,  and  dashing  forward  at  full  gallop 
he  was  soon  alongside.  Lieutenant  Anderson  was  lying 
motionless  on  the  litter. 

"Is  he  dead?"  Percy  asked  as  he  reined  up  his  horse. 

"No,  sahib;  he  is  insensible  from  loss  of  blood,  but  his 
heart  beats." 

"How  did  it  happen?"  Percy  asked  the  native  officer  in 
command  of  the  party. 

"I  had  just  placed  the  sentries  at  the  gate  when,  as  the  two 


250  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

officers  rode  over  the  bridge,  one  of  Moolraj's  soldiers  who  was 
standing  on  it  rushed  at  the  Sahib  Agnew,  knocked  him  off 
his  horse  with  a  spear,  and  then  struck  him  twice  with  a  sword. 
Then  a  trooper  of  the  escort  who  was  riding  behind  him 
spurred  his  horse  forward  against  the  sahib's  assailant,  and 
knocked  him  into  the  ditch.  Lieutenant  Anderson  raised  the 
Sahib  Agnew.  Moolraj,  who  was  riding  by  him,  pushed  on 
across  the  bridge,  and  forcing  his  horse  through  the  crowd 
rode  away.  A  sirdar  on  an  elephant  then  came  forward,  and 
the  sahib  was  lifted  into  the  howdah.  Khan  Singh  got  off  his 
horse,  and  also  mounted  with  the  sirdar  and  Mr.  Agnew.  It 
seemed  to  me  that  all  was  over.  Our  men,  who  had  piled 
their  arms,  had  run  to  them  when  I  cried  out;  but  directly 
afterwards  some  of  Moolraj's  own  party  rushed  at  Lieutenant 
Anderson  as  he  was  remounting  his  horse  and  cut  him  down. 
They  then  rode  off  and  the  crowd  dispersed,  fearing  no  doubt 
that  our  men,  who  now  crowded  the  wall,  would  fire  on  them ; 
but  this  we  did  not  do;  we  had  no  one  to  give  orders,  and 
feared  that  if  we  fired  it  might  make  matters  worse.  So  when 
the  place  was  clear  I  went  out  with  this  party,  and  finding  that 
the  white  officer  still  lived,  thought  it  best  to  bring  him  here 
at  once." 

While  the  native  officer  had  been  telling  the  story  the  party 
with  the  dhooly  had  continued  their  way,  and  Percy  rode  for- 
ward at  full  speed  to  acquaint  Mr.  Agnew  with  what  had 
happened. 

"Order  that  everything  possible  shall  be  done  for  him," 
Mr.  Agnew  said  when  he  had  made  his  report,  "and  go  on 
with  the  despatch.  Every  moment  is  of  importance.  I  will 
tell  you  what  happened  first:  and  you  can  then  tell  the  rest  as 
you  have  heard  it,  for  I  myself  know  nothing  about  it." 

Mr.  Agnew  then  dictated  the  first  part  of  the  despatch,  say- 
ing that  he  had  entered  the  fort  with  Moolraj  and  Khan  Singh. 
The  former  had  handed  over  the  keys  to  him,  the  Ghoorkas 
had  taken  possession  and  had  replaced  the  Mooltan  sentries. 


TREACHERY  251 

Seeing  that  Moolraj's  soldiers  looked  sullen  and  discontented 
Mr.  Agnew  addressed  them,  telling  them  that  they  would  not 
lose  by  the  change  of  governors,  but  that  their  services  would 
be  retained  on  the  same  terms  as  before.  Then,  thinking  by 
their  manner  that  he  had  allayed  their  discontent,  he  had 
ridden  out  of  the  fort.  He  was  conscious  of  receiving  a  heavy 
blow  that  knocked  him  from  his  seat,  and  remembered  nothing 
more  until  he  found  himself  in  a  howdah  on  an  elephant,  with 
Rung  Ram,  who  had  been  introduced  to  him  as  Moolraj's 
brother-in-law,  bandaging  up  his  wounds. 

When  Percy  had  written  the  native  officer's  report  of  the 
affair,  Mr.  Agnew  dictated  an  earnest  appeal  to  the  Resident 
to  send  forward  troops  with  all  possible  speed,  as  it  was  likely 
they  would  be  besieged  in  the  building,  which  certainly 
could  not  hold  out  for  many  days  against  the  whole  force  at 
Mooltan. 

This  letter  was  at  once  sent  off,  and  another  was  then  dic- 
tated to  Lieutenant  Edwardes,  a  young  political  officer  who 
had  with  him  a  Sikh  force  of  twelve  companies  of  infantry, 
three  hundred  and  fifty  troopers,  two  cannon,  and  two  camel 
guns.  He  was  on  the  other  side  of  the  Indus,  and  was  occu- 
pied in  settling  the  country  and  collecting  revenue.  Lieuten- 
ant Edwardes  was  urged  to  advance  immediately  with  all 
speed  to  his  assistance. 

This  letter  also  despatched,  Mr.  Agnew  dictated  a  letter  to 
Moolraj  calling  upon  him  to  prove  that  he  was  innocent  of 
all  complicity  in  the  attacks  by  at  once  arresting  the  crimi- 
nals and  coming  in  in  person  to  the  Eedgah.  At  the  time 
that  Moolraj  received  this  letter  he  was  presiding  over  a  coun- 
cil, while  the  garrison,  which  was  composed  of  Afghans, 
Hindus,  and  Sikhs,  were  taking  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  him. 
He  briefly  replied  to  Mr.  Agnew' s  letter,  saying  that  he  could 
not  comply  with  his  request,  for  the  garrison  of  the  fort  were 
all  in  rebellion,  and  the  British  officers  had  better  look  to 
their  own  safety.  On  the  following  evening  a  strong  body  of 


252  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

Moolraj's  cavalry  swept  down  and  carried  off  the  whole  of  the 
baggage  animals  of  the  force,  the  troops  offering  no  active 
opposition.  As,  with  the  loss  of  the  baggage  animals,  there 
was  no  possibility  of  the  column  retiring,  the  force  was  called 
into  the  building  and  ordered  to  prepare  to  repel  an  attack. 
Mr.  Agnew  was  now  so  far  recovered  as  to  be  able  to  get 
up  and  to  issue  the  necessary  instructions  to  the  native 
officers. 

"Things  look  very  bad,  sahib,"  Bhop  Lai  said  as  he  and 
his  comrade  came  into  Percy's  room  when  he  went  in  with 
the  intention  of  snatching  a  few  hours'  sleep,  as  he  had  been 
up  the  whole  night  before  with  Lieutenant  Anderson. 

"You  think  we  shall  not  be  able  to  defend  ourselves  until 
help  comes?  "  Percy  asked. 

"  There  will  be  no  defence  at  all,  sahib.  There  have  been 
men  all  day  in  camp  moving  about  under  pretence  of  selling 
things,  but  really  as  messengers  from  Moolraj  and  his  officers, 
calling  upon  the  men  not  to  fire  upon  their  brethren,  but  to 
join  those  who  were  resolved  to  fight  to  the  death  against  the 
Feringhees  and  the  traitor  Lahore  government  who  are  their 
servants.  All  in  Mooltan — Sikh,  Mohammedan,  and  Hindu 
— had  united  for  the  common  cause.  Moreover,  resistance, 
it  was  said,  would  be  vain;  no  help  could  reach  the  Eedgah, 
and  all  who  drew  sword  in  defence  of  the  Feringhees  would 
be  slain." 

"And  were  they  successful,  Bhop  Lai?  " 

"You  will  see,  sahib,  that  not  a  shot  will  be  fired  when 
Moolraj  advances  against  the  place." 

Percy  went  down  again  to  Mr.  Agnew,  and  told  him  what 
he  had  heard.  "I  cannot  doubt  what  you  tell  me,  Mr. 
Groves;  your  man's  information  proved  right  before.  But  in 
any  case  there  is  nothing  to  be  done.  Anderson  can  scarcely 
stand.  I  am  not  fit  to  be  out  of  bed.  You  and  your  two 
men,  with  perhaps  the  moonshis,  seem  to  be  alone  to  be 
relied  on;  and  I  need  not  say  that  resistance,  even  by  two  or 


TREACHERY  253 

three  hundred  men,  would  be  hopeless,  and  would  but  entail 
the  death  of  all.  Escape,  as  far  as  Anderson  and  myself  are 
concerned,  is  out  of  the  question.  We  could  not  sit  our 
horses  half  a  mile,  and  the  motion  would  cause  our  wounds  to 
burst  out  bleeding  again  at  once.  It  is  not  to  be  thought  of. 
Danger  for  us  there  can  be  none.  Moolraj  can  have  no 
object  in  murdering  two  defenceless  men,  especially  as  he 
must  know  that  such  a  crime  would  never  be  forgiven,  and 
would  involve  him  in  a  desperate  war  with  England.  At 
present  he  can  assert  that  the  attack  upon  us  was  the  work  of 
fanatics,  and  that  he  regrets  the  matter  greatly,  as,  although 
determined  to  free  himself  from  the  dictation  of  Lahore,  he 
had  no  thought  of  any  hostility  towards  the  British.  Our 
lives,  therefore,  are  perfectly  safe.  But  I  see  no  use  in  your 
waiting  to  share  the  captivity  that  we  may  probably  have  to 
undergo  for  a  time,  and  I  should  recommend  you  to  mount 
and  ride  off  with  your  two  men  this  evening." 

"I  can't  do  that,  sir,"  Percy  said  bluntly.  "I  cannot 
desert  you  and  Mr.  Anderson,  wounded  as  you  are.  It  is 
possible,  too,  that  the  troops  will,  after  all,  prove  faithful. 
But  in  any  case  it  is  impossible  that  I  should  leave  you.  It 
would  be  a  bad  beginning  indeed  of  my  service  in  the  Com- 
pany were  I  to  run  away  and  leave  two  of  its  wounded  officers 
behind  me." 

Mr.  Agnew  was  silent  for  a  minute.  "  I  cannot  press  the 
point,  Mr.  Groves,"  he  said  gravely,  "for  I  feel  that  were 
I  placed  as  you  are  I  might  myself  disobey  instructions. 
Stay,  therefore,  if  you  will;  but  I  give  you  my  stringent 
orders,  and  I  will  write  them  down  and  hand  them  to  you  in 
the  morning,  that  if  the  troops  here  mutiny  and  surrender  the 
place  to  Moolraj  you  are,  if  possible,  to  effect  your  escape 
and  carry  the  news  at  full  speed  to  Lieutenant  Edwardes.  If 
he  marches  on  alone,  ignorant  of  what  has  happened  here, 
he  will  be  met  and  overwhelmed  by  the  whole  of  Moolraj 's 
forces,  and  it  is  even  probable  that  his  troops,  when  they  hear 


254  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

that  those  here  have  fraternized  with  the  enemy,  may  also  go 
over  in  a  body.  But  whether  they  do  so  or  not,  it  is  of  the 
highest  importance  that  you  should  warn  Lieutenant  Edwardes 
of  the  treachery  of  the  troops  here.  I  shall  put  that  down  in 
writing  in  the  morning,  and  I  rely  upon  you  to  carry  out  the 
order.  You  can  do  no  possible  good  to  us  by  staying,  and 
would  probably  indeed  do  us  harm,  as  it  might  excite  the 
passions  of  the  Mooltan  men  when  they  enter  to  see  one  of  us 
still  uninjured,  and  blood  once  shed  we  might  all  be  killed." 

"Very  well,  sir;  if  you  give  me  the  written  order  I  shall, 
of  course,  obey  it,  and,  indeed,  I  acknowledge  that  your  view 
of  the  matter  seems  to  me  unanswerable.  The  destruction  of 
Lieutenant  Edwardes'  force  would  be  a  great  misfortune,  for 
it  would  immensely  encourage  the  people  here,  and  would 
enable  them  to  make  all  their  preparations  for  war  undis- 
turbed, as  it  would  be  a  long  while  before  the  Lahore  people 
could  get  together  an  army  capable  of  capturing  Mooltan. 

"  I  see  that  I  cannot  be  of  use  to  you,  and  I  agree  with  you. 
Moolraj  will  naturally  protect  you  and  treat  you  well,  as  he 
cannot  wish  to  bring  down  the  vengeance  of  the  government 
of  India  upon  him." 

The  two  men  were  still  waiting  in  Percy's  room  when  he 
returned  to  it. 

"Get  the  horses  in  readiness  to  mount  at  any  moment,"  he 
said.  "I  have  Mr.  Agnew's  orders  that  if  the  troops  here1 
join  Moolraj,  I  am  to  ride;at  all  speed  to  carry  the  .news  to 
Lieutenant  Edwardes,  who  was  ordered  to  advance  from  Dera- 
Futteh-Khan  and  to  cross  the  ferry  at  Leia,  where  I  shall 
probably  find  him.  It  is  ninety  miles  away,  but  our  horses 
will  carry  us  there." 

"  It  would  be  better  to  start  to-night,  sahib.  We  shall  be 
hotly  pursued  if  we. go  off  in  the  daytime." 

"I  know  that,"  Percy  replied;  "but  it  must  be  risked. 
Until  it  is  certain  that  the  troops  here  intend  to  join  Moolraj 
I  cannot  go." 


TREACHERY  255 

"Very  well,  sahib,  whatever  are  your  orders  we  shall  obey 
them.  If  we  get  but  a  fair  start  there  are  not  many  horses  in 
Mooltan  that  will  be  able  to  overtake  us." 

"That  is  so,  Bhop  Lai;  and  any  that  do  come  up  with  us 
we  shall  probably  be  able  to  give  a  good  account  of. " 

"We  will  watch  by  turns  to-night,  sahib;  it  is  possible  these 
rascals  may  intend  to  surrender  the  place  to  Moolraj  before 
morning." 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE   NEWS   OF   THE   MASSACRE 

THE  night  of  the  ipth  of  April  passed  off  quietly.  In  the 
morning  the  guns  of  the  fort  opened  fire  against  the  Eed- 
gah.  A  single  shot  only  was  fired  in  reply  by  the  battery  of 
the  garrison,  and  then  the  whole  of  the  artillerymen  quitted 
their  guns.  The  fort  continued  to  fire  for  some  time,  but  the 
distance  was  too  great  for  any  damage  to  be  done,  and  the  fire 
presently  ceased.  Mr.  Agnew  and  Percy  went  to  the  gunners 
and  exhorted  them  to  return  to  their  duty,  but  the  men  lis- 
tened in  sullen  silence  and  gradually  dispersed.  In  a  short 
time  they  began  to  leave  the  building  in  parties  of  twos  and 
threes,  and  by  mid-day  half  the  garrison  had  deserted. 

"Here  are  your  orders,  Mr.  Groves,"  Mr.  Agnew  said,  plac- 
ing a  letter  in  Percy's  hands.  "You  can  use  your  own  judg- 
ment as  to  going  now  or  waiting  until  nightfall.  My  own 
opinion  is,  that  it  would  be  best  for  you  to  start  at  once.  I 
do  not  know  why  Moolraj  delays,  for  he  must  know  that  he 
will  meet  with  no  resistance.  However,  at  night  the  place 
may  be  surrounded,  and  you  might  have  more  difficulty  in 
getting  off.  In  the  next  place,  as  you  are  ignorant  of  the 
country,  you  might  miss  your  way  and  lose  much  precious 
time.  And  lastly,  every  hour  is  of  consequence  to  Edwardes. 
Even  now  emissaries  from  Mooltan  may  be  at  work  among  his 
troops.  I  have  mentioned  in  my  orders  that  as  the  troops 

256 


THE  NEWS  OF  THE  .MASSACRE  257 

here  have  refused  to  fire  and  are  deserting  in  great  numbers, 
it  is  evident  that  Moolraj  can  enter  whenever  he  chooses;  and 
as  it  is  of  paramount  importance  to  warn  Lieutenant  Edwardes 
to  arrest  his  march,  I  have  ordered  you  to  start  immediately, 
as  you  have  expressed  your  willingness  to  undertake  the  ser- 
vice, although  it  is  undoubtedly  one  of  great  danger.  I  have 
said  that  your  own  wishes  would  have  led  you  to  remain  here 
with  myself  and  Anderson  and  to  share  our  fate  whatever  it 
might  be,  but  that  you  have  yielded  to  my  anxiety  that  Lieu- 
tenant Edwardes  should  be  warned.  I  have  also  inclosed  a 
note  to  Edwardes,  saying  that  your  services  will  be  at  his 
disposal  until  you  receive  orders  from  the  Resident." 

"  I  will  start  at  once,  sir,  as  you  think  it  best,"  Percy  said, 
much  moved  at  the  thoughtful  kindness  of  the  wounded  officer; 
"  and  there  is  little  doubt  I  shall  get  through  safely.  I  am 
splendidly  mounted,  and  my  men  have  also  very  good  horses. 
I  trust,  sir,  that  I  shall  ere  long  meet  you  again." 

"  I  hope  so,  confidently,  Mr.  Groves.  It  is  evidently  Mool- 
raj's  interest  to  treat  us  well,  even  if  he  keeps  us  as  hostages, 
and  I  cannot  think  there  is  any  danger.  Good-bye,  lad,  and 
a  safe  ride  to  you !  " 

Percy  then  went  in  and  said  good-bye  to  Lieutenant  Ander- 
son, and  with  a  heavy  heart  went  out  to  his  men. 

"I  am  ready  to  start,"  he  said;  "get  the  horses  to  the  back 
entrance  without  attracting  more  notice  than  you  can  help. 
These  fellows  might  oppose  our  leaving.  I  will  follow  you  in 
a  minute  or  two  and  join  you  at  the  gate." 

"There  are  many  more  of  them  about  there,  sahib,  than 
there  are  at  the  main  entrance.  They  are  slinking  away  by 
scores,  and  I  do  not  think  that  there  is  even  a  sentry  on  guard 
at  this  end.  If  we  bring  the  horses  up  here  and  you  mount, 
Akram  Chunder  shall  mount  also  and  lead  my  horse.  I  will 
run  forward  and  unbar  the  gate,  and  if  any  of  the  fellows 
standing  about  interfere  with  me  the  three  of  us  will  be  able 
to  overpower  them.  We  will  have  our  pistols  in  readiness." 


258  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

"Very  well,  perhaps  that  will  be  the  best  plan.  I  see  there 
are  very  few  of  them  about  here.  Do  you  fetch  up  the  horses  at 
once;  I  will  get  a  couple  of  bottles  of  wine  and  some  bread 
for  our  joruney." 

Percy  was  at  the  door  of  the  court-yard  again  before  the 
men  came  up  with  the  horses.  As  they  did  so  several  of  the 
soldiers  standing  about  moved  forward  with  scowling  faces. 
They  were,  however,  unarmed,  having  ostentatiously  piled 
their  muskets  when  the  firing  ceased.  Percy  drew  the  pistols 
from  his  holster,  slipped  the  bottles  and  bread  into  their 
place,  and  leapt  into  the  saddle. 

"Stand  back,  men,"  he  said  authoritatively;  "any  one  who 
interferes  with  us  will  get  a  bullet  in  his  head.  Keep  abreast 
of  me,  Akram,"  he  went  on;  "lead  the  other  horse  between 
us." 

Bhop  Lai  ran  forward  ahead  to  the  gate  and  began  to  undo 
the  bars.  Several  of  the  men  loitering  near  ran  to  stop  him, 
but  as  Percy  and  Akram  rode  up  they  shrank  back  from  the 
four  levelled  pistols.  Bhop  Lai  threw  the  gate  open,  and 
leaping  on  his  horse  they  rode  out  together,  regardless  of  the 
angry  shouts  that  pursued  them. 

"We  will  ride  quietly  for  a  while,"  Percy  said,  reining  his 
horse  into  a  canter  when  they  had  gone  a  few  hundred  yards. 
"We  shall  be  within  sight  of  the  walls  of  Mooltan  as  we  ride 
along  between  it  and  the  river,  and  if  we  are  galloping  hard 
they  may  suspect  something.  The  great  point  is  to  get  to  the 
ferry  at  Beelun  before  they  are  close  to  us.  Once  across  we 
can  laugh  at  them." 

When  they  had  gone  half  a  mile  Akram  Chunder  looked 
back. 

"They  are  after  us,  sahib.  There  are  fifty  horsemen  at 
least  just  coming  out  from  behind  the  Eedgah,  and,"  he 
added,  "  there  are  four  men  away  to  our  right  galloping  at  the 
top  of  their  speed  towards  Mooltan." 

"Then  we  will  quicken  our  pace,"  Percy  said,  touching  his 


THE   NEWS   OF  THE   MASSACRE  259 

horse  with  his  heel.  "We  have  six  miles  to  ride  to  the 
ferry.  We  will  gain  another  quarter  of  a  mile  on  them  if 
we  can." 

The  horses  were  now  put  to  their  full  speed  and  went  along 
at  almost  racing  pace.  When  abreast  of  the  fort  of  Mooltan, 
which  lay  a  mile  away  on  their  right,  they  could  perceive 
that  they  had  sensibly  increased  their  lead.  They  had  gone 
a  quarter  of  a  mile  further  when  there  was  the  boom  of  a 
heavy  cannon,  and  a  ball  ploughed  up  the  field  a  short  dis- 
tance behind  them. 

"I  expected  that,"  Percy  said.  "Those  fellows  from 
Eedgah  have  taken  them  the  news  of  our  escape.  They  are 
only  wasting  their  shot.  The  betting  is  a  thousand  to  one 
against  their  hitting  us  at  this  distance,  going  the  pace  we 
are." 

Six  guns  were  fired,  but  none  of  the  shots  came  as  near 
them  as  the  first  had  done,  and  in  twenty  minutes  they  drew 
up  their  horses  at  the  ferry.  The  boat  was  not  there  but  was 
coming  across  and  was  within  a  couple  of  hundred  yards  of 
the  shore. 

"Do  you  dismount,  sahib,  and  stand  by  your  horse," 
Akram  Chunder  said;  "they  will  take  us  for  natives.  But  if 
they  see  you  they  may  refuse  to  bring  their  boat  up,  for  the 
sound  of  the  cannon  will  have  told  them  that  something  is 
wrong." 

Percy  did  as  his  follower  suggested. 

"How  slowly  they  come  !  "  he  said  impatiently. 

"There  is  time,  sahib;  it  would  not  do  to  shout  to  them  to 
hurry.  We  will  dismount  and  lead  our  horses  d(own  to  the 
water's  edge;  if  you  keep  close  to  their  heels  you  will  not  be 
noticed." 

Some  twenty  country  people  got  out  of  the  boat  when  it 
touched  the  shore.  Percy's  men  at  once  led  their  horses  on 
board  and  he  followed.  The  four  boatmen  looked  surprised 
at  seeing  an  Englishman,  but  made  no  remark. 


260  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

"Push  off  at  once,"  Bhop  Lai  said. 

"We  are  going  ashore  to  get  our  meal,"  one  of  the  men 
replied;  "we  shall  not  start  till  we  have  got  a  boat- load." 

"You  will  go  at  once,"  Bhop  Lai  said,  drawing  a  pistol. 
"  I  will  pay  you  as  much  as  a  whole  boat-load  would  do,  but 
I  have  no  time  to  spare." 

As  the  others  also  drew  their  pistols  the  men  sullenly  thrust 
their  poles  into  the  water  and  pushed  off.  They  had  gone 
less  than  a  hundred  yards  when  a  body  of  horsemen  rode  furi- 
ously down  to  the  water's  edge  and  shouted  to  them  to  return. 

"Go  on,"  Percy  said  authoritatively;  "if  one  of  you  hesi- 
tates for  a  moment,  he  is  a  dead  man." 

Seeing  that  the  boat  continued  its  way  the  sowars  opened 
fire  with  their  pistols,  but  though  the  balls  fell  round  the  boat 
the  distance  was  too  great  for  accurate  shooting,  and  in  two 
or  three  minutes  they  were  altogether  beyond  range,  the  men 
poling  lustily  now  so  as  to  place  themselves  out  of  danger. 
The  Indus  is  of  great  width  at  this  point,  but  the  waters  are 
comparatively  shallow  and  the  stream  gentle,  and  in  an  hour 
they  gained  the  opposite  shore.  Percy  had  directed  them  to 
make  for  a  point  half  a  mile  below  the  town  of  Kote,  instead 
of  the  ordinary  landing-place,  where  they  might  have  encoun- 
tered a  number  of  people  waiting  for  the  boat  to  return,  as 
the  traffic  was  considerable  and  they  had  on  their  way  across 
met  two  laden  boats.  As  the  water  was  shallow  they  had  to 
get  the  horses  over  the  side  fifty  yards  from  shore,  and  then, 
having  well  paid  the  boatmen,  they  rode  to  the  bank.  Cut- 
ting across  the  fields  they  avoided  the  town  altogether,  and 
struck  the  road  a  mile  beyond  it.  Before  leaving  the  river 
bank  they  saw  that  there  were  seven  or  eight  loaded  boats 
half-way  over,  the  troopers  having  doubtless  seized  some  of 
the  country  craft  to  convey  them  across. 

"We  shall  be  three  or  four  miles  on  our  way  before  they 
have  all  landed  and  mounted,"  Akram  Chunder  said.  "We 
shall  see  no  more  of  them." 


THE  NEWS  OF  THE  MASSACRE  261 

The  road  was  a  good  one,  and  for  some  time  they  rode  fast; 
then  they  reined  in  their  horses  and  proceeded  at  a  slower 
pace. 

"We  have  ninety  miles  in  all  to  do,"  Percy  said,  "and  we 
must  not  risk  foundering  the  horses.  They  have  had  no 
exercise  since  they  left  Lahore  and  we  must  husband  their 
strength.  The  troopers  are  not  likely  to  pursue  more  than 
thirty  miles  from  the  ferry  at  the  outside,  perhaps  not  half 
that.  When  they  learn  that  we  are  keeping  our  distance 
ahead  of  them  they  will  see  that  they  have  little  chance  of 
overtaking  us  and  will  not  care  about  killing  their  horses  in  a 
hopeless  pursuit." 

Whenever  they  passed  through  a  village  they  went  through 
at  a  regular  pace  as  if  in  no  way  pressed  for  time.  The 
natives  were  doubtless  aware  of  the  attack  on  the  two  English 
officers,  but  could  hardly  know  that  the  Sikh  troops  had 
proved  faithless,  and  would  imagine  that  the  white  officer 
and  his  two  men  were  riding  ahead  of  that  force  on  its  way  to 
join  Lieutenant  Edwardes.  Before  leading  the  horses  out 
from  the  stable  the  men  had  filled  their  bags  with  grain,  and 
after  riding  twenty  miles  from  the  ferry  they  stopped  for  two 
hours  under  some  trees  on  elevated  ground,  where  they  could 
command  a  view  down  the  long  straight  road  two  or  three 
miles.  As  there  were  no  signs  of  their  pursuers  at  the  end  of 
that  time  they  felt  sure  that  these  had  given  the  chase  up  as 
hopeless,  and  therefore  continued  their  journey  at  the  pace 
the  horses  could  best  keep  up.  Soon  after  they  started  night 
fell,  and  the  riding  was  much  more  pleasant  than  it  had  been 
during  the  heat. 

They  halted  again  for  three  hours  at  midnight,  finished 
their  bread  and  wine,  and  gave  the  horses  another  good  feed. 
At  eight  o'clock  in  the  morning  they  approached  Leia,  but 
hearing  from  some  peasants  that  no  force  had  arrived  there 
up  to  the  previous  evening,  they  made  a  circuit  of  the  town 
and  crossed  the  river  at  the  ferry,  two  or  three  miles  distant 


262  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

from  it.  As  they  rode  into  the  next  village  they  saw  that  the 
street  was  crowded  with  Sikh  soldiers,  who  were  engaged  in 
cooking  their  food. 

"Are  you  from  Mooltan?"  a  young  officer  asked,  running 
out  as  they  drew  rein  at  the  house  where  they  had  been  told 
Lieutenant  Edwardes  had  taken  up  his  quarters. 

"We  are,"  Percy  said,  as  he  threw  himself  off  his  horse. 
"We  left  the  Eedgah  at  one  o'clock  yesterday." 

"How  are  Agnew  and  Anderson?     Doing  well,  I  hope?" 

"They  were  both  doing  well  when  I  left  them,  as  far  as 
their  wounds  went;  but  they  are  in  a  desperate  positon." 

"Why,  the  place  is  a  strong  one;  I  know  it  well,"  Lieuten- 
ant Edwardes  said.  "Twelve  hundred  men  with  a  battery  of 
artillery  ought  to  be  able  to  hold  it  at  least  some  days  against 
all  the  troops  in  Mooltan." 

"They  might  have  done  so  if  the  troops  had  fought,"  Percy 
said;  "  but  they  have  gone  over  to  Moolraj.  Half  of  them  had 
left  when  I  came  away,  and  the  others  were  leaving  fast.  I 
do  not  think  there  would  be  a  score  of  men  left  them  by  sun- 
set yesterday.  I  have  a  note  for  you,  and  I  shall  be  glad  if 
you  will  read  Mr.  Agnew's  written  orders  to  me.  You  will 
see  that  I  did  not  leave  the  two  wounded  officers  willingly." 

By  this  time  they  had  entered  the  house. 

"Sit  down  and  take  something  to  eat  while  I  glance 
through  these  papers.  Mr.  Agnew  does  you  full  justice,"  he 
went  on,  more  warmly  than  he  had  before  spoken,  after  read- 
ing the  two  documents.  "You  were,  of  course,  obliged  to 
obey  orders,  and  could  have  been  of  no  use  to  them  under 
the  circumstances.  Agnew  was  evidently  thinking  much 
more  of  me  than  of  himself.  What  do  you  think  will  happen 
to  them?" 

"  Mr.  Agnew  was  perfectly  confident  that  as  it  was  clearly 
to  the  interest  of  Moolraj  not  to  draw  the  English  into  the 
quarrel  between  him  and  Lahore,  he  would  protect  and  take 
good  care  of  them." 


THE  NEWS  OF  THE  MASSACRE  263 

"I  sincerely  hope  so,"  Lieutenant  Edwardes  replied;  "but 
Moolraj  showed  a  very  hostile  front  to  us  when  Napier  passed 
through  with  his  force  to  join  Sir  Hugh  Gough.  He  professed 
to  stand  neutral,  but  there  was  no  doubt  he  would  not  have 
been  neutral  had  he  dared  fight.  Besides,  there  are  the 
Mooltan  rabble  to  deal  with.  Agnew  would  have  done  better 
to  surrender  at  once  to  Moolraj  directly  he  saw  that  the  Sikhs 
had  turned  traitors.  If  he  puts  it  off  till  night  the  budmashes 
of  Mooltan,  knowing  that  the  Eedgah  is  no  longer  defended, 
may  take  the  matter  in  hand,  in  which  case  I  would  not  give 
a  rupee  for  the  lives  of  the  two  Englishmen." 

"When  did  the  messenger  reach  you  with  the  news?" 
Percy  asked. 

"At  eight  o'clock  last  night.  So  you  have  gained  some 
fourteen  hours  upon  him,  as  the  despatch  is  dated  half-past 
eleven." 

"I  was  well  mounted,"  Percy  said.  "I  might  have  been 
here  some  hours  earlier,  but  my  horse  is  a  very  valuable 
one,  and  I  knew  that  an  hour  or  two  could  make  little 
difference." 

"  I  sent  off  a  messenger  as  soon  as  I  got  Agnew' s  despatch, 
to  Lieutenant  Taylor,  who  is  with  General  Van  Cortlandt,  who 
is,  as  I  daresay  you  know,  an  officer  in  the  Sikh  service  at 
Bunnoo,  begging  him  to  send  me  a  regiment  of  cavalry  and 
four  guns  at  once.  I  then  issued  orders  for  my  force  to  start 
at  daylight,  and  we  have  marched  twelve  miles.  I  intended 
to  go  on  to  Leia  and  halt  there  for  the  night  and  to  move 
forward  quietly  till  Van  Cortlandt's  detachment  joined  me, 
and  then  push  forward  with  all  speed.  What  you  have  told 
me  now,  of  course,  changes  the  situation  altogether.  I  shall 
go  forward  to  Leia  as  I  intended,  but  shall  halt  there  and 
intrench  myself,  and  wait  to  be  attacked.  I  may  be  able  to 
raise  my  force  considerably  from  the  Pathan  portion  of  the 
population,  between  whom  and  the  Sikhs  there  is  a  long- 
standing enmity.  I  see  Mr.  Agnew  has  placed  your  services 


264  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

at  my  disposal,  Mr.  Groves.  I  shall  be  glad  indeed  to  have 
an  Englishman  with  me.  It  is  a  great  relief  to  have  someone 
to  chat  with  and  discuss  matters  in  one's  own  language.  Of 
course  you  are  quite  new  to  this  district.  I  suppose  you  have 
only  just  come  up  country.  You  have  dropped,  indeed,  into 
a  very  hot  corner  for  a  young  civilian." 

Percy  laughed.  "  I  daresay  you  think  I  look  very  young 
even  for  a  young  civilian,  Mr.  Edwardes." 

Lieutenant  Edwardes  joined  in  the  laugh. 

"  Well,  I  was  thinking  so.  Of  course  you  must  be  twenty 
or  you  would  not  have  been  sent  up  from  Calcutta,  but  you  do 
not  look  more  than  eighteen." 

"I  am  a  month  or  two  under  that  age,"  Percy  said;  "but  I 
do  know  the  country  pretty  well,  though  not  on  this  side  of 
the  Punjaub;  and  in  fact  I  speak  both  Punjaubi  and  Pathan 
almost  as  well  as  I  do  English."  He  then  gave  Lieutenant 
Edwardes  a  sketch  of  his  life  since  his  arrival  in  India. 

"I  congratulate  myself  very  heartily,"  Lieutenant  Edwardes 
said  cordially.  "  You  will  indeed  be  of  assistance  to  me.  I 
can  quite  understand  now  your  being  in  the  service  so  young 
and  your  being  appointed  as  assistant  to  Agnew.  It  will  be 
an  immense  comfort  to  me  having  with  me  one  who  under- 
stands the  people  so  thoroughly,  and  can  speak  both  with  the 
Sikhs  and  Afghans.  But  it  is  time  for  me  to  be  moving 
forward,  or  I  shall  not  get  my  men  across  in  time  to  occupy 
Leia  before  nightfall.  I  will  leave  a  party  of  fifty  men  here, 
so  you  and  your  two  followers  can  rest  yourselves  and  your 
horses  and  join  me  to-morrow." 

"Thank  you.  I  feel  quite  capable  of  going  on  with  you, 
but  I  certainly  should  be  glad  to  let  the  horses  have  twenty- 
four  hours'  rest  after  doing  something  like  a  hundred  miles 
since  they  started  yesterday." 

"You  may  as  well  take  possession  of  these  quarters.  I 
think  it  is  the  best  house  in  the  place,  and  as  the  owners  are 
Afghans  they  are  ready  to  do  anything  they  can  for  us." 


THE    NEWS   OF   THE    MASSACRE  265 

A  quarter  of  an  hour  later  the  Sikhs  started  on  their  forward 
march.  Percy  found  his  men  had  been  told  that  they  were  to 
have  a  halt  till  the  following  morning,  and  so,  after  seeing 
they  had  comfortable  quarters  and  paying  a  visit  to  his  horse, 
he  lay  down  and  slept  until  evening.  Then  he  got  up  and 
had  a  meal,  walked  round  the  village  and  had  a  talk  with  the 
Sikh  officer  of  the  detachment,  and  then  turned  in  again  until 
the  next  morning,  when,  as  soon  as  the  sun  was  up,  he  started 
with  the  detachment,  and  presently  joined  Lieutenant  Ed- 
wardes  at  Leia.  The  latter  had  occupied  the  town  without 
opposition,  Moolraj's  governor,  with  the  small  body  of  troops 
he  had  with  him,  having  retired  at  his  approach. 

The  next  few  days  were  occupied  in  throwing  up  intrench- 
ments  round  the  town.  They  heard  that  Moolraj  was  about  to 
cross  the  Chenab  with  five  thousand  men  on  his  way  to  attack 
them,  but  as  he  hoped  that  Van  Cortlandt's  regiment  with  the 
four  guns  would  join  him  before  Moolraj  could  arrive,  Lieu- 
tenant Edwardes  determined  to  maintain  his  position.  One 
morning,  however,  he  came  with  a  serious  face  into  Percy's 
room. 

"I  have  terrible  news,"  he  said;  "a  messenger  has  just 
returned — the  one  I  sent  with  a  letter  to  Mr.  Agnew  telling 
him  that  I  would  be  with  him  as  soon  as  possible.  On  the 
way  he  met  Moolraj's  force,  and,  mingling  with  them,  learned 
what  had  happened  at  Mooltan  after  you  left.  By  nightfall 
there  remained  at  the  Eedgah  only  some  twelve  men,  the 
native  clerks,  and  the  officers'  servants.  Mr.  Agnew  had 
already  sent  to  Moolraj  to  say  that  he  was  ready  to  surrender, 
and  begging  him  to  come  in  person  to  take  over  the  place. 
Whether  Moolraj  delayed  purposely  in  order  that  the  work 
should  be  finished  before  he  arrived  was  a  matter  of  doubt, 
but  at  any  rate  he  did  not  come.  Soon  after  dark  a  mob  of 
the  ruffians  of  the  town  with  some  soldiers,  among  whom  were 
many  of  the  Sikh  mutineers,  proceeded  to  the  Eedgah,  burst 
in  the  doors,  and  with  shouts  of  '  Death  to  the  Feringhees ! ' 


266  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

rushed  in.  Mr.  Agnew  was  sitting  by  the  bedside  of  Anderson. 
They  had  heard  the  tumult  of  the  approaching  mob,  and 
doubtless  felt  that  their  fate  was  at  hand.  Agnew  rose  as  they 
entered,  and  was  cut  down  at  once  and  despatched  by  two  or 
three  blows.  They  then  rushed  at  Anderson  and  hacked  him 
to  pieces." 

"This  is  terrible  indeed,"  Percy  said,  much  moved  at  the 
news  of  the  death  of  the  two  gentlemen  with  whom  he  had 
spent  the  last  fortnight.  "  Do  you  think  that  Moolraj  was  a 
party  to  this  atrocity?  " 

"They  say  that  Agnew's  head  was  taken  to  him,  and,  in  his 
presence  and  with  his  apparent  approval,  treated  with  every 
indignity.  Certainly  he  rewarded  his  murderer  with  a  large 
present  and  a  robe  of  honour,  and  also  gave  presents  to  the 
man  who  had  taken  the  principal  part  in  the  murder  of 
Anderson.  From  my  own  knowledge  of  Moolraj,  although  he 
is  doubtless  ambitious,  I  should  say  that  he  is  a  weak  man, 
without  courage  or  resolution.  I  do  not  think  he  had  any- 
thing to  do  with  the  first  attack  on  the  two  officers,  but  seeing 
that  the  harm  was  done,  knowing  that  he  would  be  blamed  for 
it,  and -being  really  in  the  hands  of  his  turbulent  soldiery,  he 
resolved  to  throw  in  his  lot  with  them,  and  from  that  moment 
he  was,  like  many  other  timid  men  when  driven  to  the  wall, 
in  favour  of  desperate  measures.  He  would,  no  doubt,  con- 
sider that  by  allowing,  if  he  did  not  direct,  the  murder  of  the 
two  officers,  he  bound  the  soldiers  all  the  more  closely  to  his 
interests,  as  the  deed  would  put  an  end  to  all  possibility  of  a 
reconciliation. 

"  Of  course  this  sad  affair  altogether  alters  my  position.  I 
was  ready  to  push  forward  at  all  hazards  until  I  heard  from 
you  that  the  Sikhs  had  mutinied ;  then  the  necessity  for  speed 
was  at  an  end,  for  it  was  evident  that  the  Eedgah  would  be 
captured  the  day  you  left.  Another  serious  circumstance  has 
occurred  that  renders  it  more  than  doubtful  whether  I  can 
maintain  myself  here.  One  of  the  native  officers  has  just 


THE    NEWS    OF   THE    MASSACRE  267 

brought  me  a  document  that  has  fallen  into  his  hands.  It  is 
an  address  from  the  Sikhs  who  deserted  at  the  Eedgah  to  the 
men  here,  calling  upon  them  to  join  their  countrymen  and 
make  common  cause  against  the  English,  for  that  all  the  Pun- 
jaub  was  about  to  take  up  arms  against  the  Feringhees.  The 
worst  of  it  is,  the  officer  says  that  from  what  he  learns  this 
document  has  been  here  for  the  last  two  days,  and  has  been 
read  by  all  the  soldiers;  and  if  that  is  the  case  I  can  no  longer 
place  the  sightest  reliance  upon  them. 

"  I  am  desirous  of  holding  on  here  until  the  last  moment 
for  two  reasons.  I  hear  that  Moolraj  has  sent  men  all  over  the 
country  to  enlist  the  Pathans.  They  are  by  far  the  most  war- 
like people  here,  and  will  certainly  take  service  with  him 
unless  they  take  sendee  with  me.  For  choice  perhaps  they 
would  join  me,  because  they  have  no  love  of  the  Sikhs,  who 
conquered  their  country.  So  long,  then,  as  I  remain  here  they 
will  believe  that  the  success  of  Moolraj  is  not  assured,  and  not 
only  shall  we  get  a  large  number  of  valuable  recruits,  but  pre- 
vent their  going  to  Mooltan.  In  the  next  place,  I  have  to  pay 
the  men  I  enlist,  and  to  do  so  I  must  collect,  as  far  as  possible, 
the  revenues  of  the  districts  in  this  neighbourhood,  for  the 
money,  like  the  recruits,  will  go  to  Mooltan  if  it  does  not 
come  to  me.  So  you  see  it  is  of  the  greatest  importance  that 
I  should  hold  on  here  as  long  as  possible  in  spite  of  this  ugly 
business  of  the  Sikhs.  I  wish  I  could  get  rid  of  them  alto- 
gether, but  that,  until  I  can  get  together  a  strong  force  of 
Pathans,  is  impossible." 

Percy  was  greatly  struck  with  the  energy  and  firmness  of  the 
young  officer.  Edwardes  had  for  the  past  year  been  acting  as 
political  agent  in  the  greater  part  of  the  district  between  the 
Indus  and  the  foot  of  the  mountains,  and  had  also  completely 
pacified  Bunnoo,  a  most  turbulent  district,  inhabited  by  tribes 
of  the  Afghan  race  who  had  for  five-and-twenty  years  success- 
fully resisted  the  efforts  of  the  Sikhs  to  conquer  them,  while 
he  had  so  completely  gained  their  confidence  that  at  his 


268  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

bidding  they  levelled  the  four  hundred  forts  that  constituted 
the  strength  of  their  country,  and  many  of  them  had  already 
sent  in  offers  of  service. 

For  the  next  two  or  three  days  there  was  no  outward  change 
in  the  position.  A  good  many  Afghans  were  recruited,  and 
messengers  had  arrived,  saying  that  the  whole  of  Van  Cort- 
landt's  force  were  on  the  march  to  join  him;  but  as  these  had 
not  arrived,  while  Moolraj's  force,  which  was  provided  with 
eighty  guns,  had  approached  within  a  day's  march,  Edwardes 
deemed  that  it  would  be  imprudent  to  remain  longer  when  he 
was  more  than  doubtful  of  the  fidelity  of  two-thirds  of  his 
men.  He  accordingly  evacuated  Leia  and  recrossed  the 
Indus.  He  had  hardly  done  so  when  he  received  news  that 
the  bulk  of  the  enemy's  army  had  suddenly  changed  their 
course  and  marched  north;  and  he  therefore  directed  a  body 
of  some  two  hundred  Pathans  who  had  not  yet  crossed  the 
river  to  remain  there.  Four  hundred  of  the  enemy  occupied 
Leia,  and  the  Pathans  were  ordered  to  retire  across  the  river 
if  they  advanced.  Thinking  it  probable  that  they  would  not 
do  so,  as  a  retreat  is  of  all  things  the  most  distasteful  to  men 
of  this  race,  he  sent  over  fifty  more  men  to  reinforce  them. 
The  enemy  did  advance;  the  Pathans  defended  the  bank  of  a 
nullah,  and  after  a  time  took  the  offensive,  rushed  across  the 
nullah  and  fell  furiously  upon  the  enemy,  whom  they  utterly 
routed,  pursuing  them  a  long  distance  and  retaking  possession 
of  Leia.  The  town,  however,  was  not  retained,  for  Edwardes 
had  just  received  orders  to  undertake  no  operations  on  the 
eastern  side  of  the  Indus,  but  to  confine  himself  to  preventing 
the  passage  of  the  river  by  the  enemy  and  to  maintaining  order 
in  his  district.  He  therefore  marched  his  whole  force  a  few 
miles  up  the  river  to  the  fort  of  Girang,  where  he  awaited  the 
arrival  of  General  Cortlandt  with  his  command. 

That  officer  joined  him  there  on  the  4th  of  May,  with  the 
Mohammedan  regiment  of  Loobdan  Khan  and  a  battery  of  six 
guns.  Moolraj  did  not  attempt  to  cross  the  river,  and  by  the 


THE  NEWS  OF  THE  MASSACRE  269 

igth  further  reinforcements  had  arrived,  bringing  up  Ed- 
wardes'  force  to  about  four  thousand  eight  hundred  men,  of 
whom  four  thousand  were  believed  to  be  faithful,  while  the 
eight  hundred  Sikhs  were  known  to  be  disaffected.  More 
than  this,  he  had  heard  from  Bhawul  Khan,  the  Rajah  of 
Bhawulpoor,  a  state  on  the  southern  side  of  the  river  Ghara, 
that  he  was  ready  to  move  in  a  short  time  against  Mooltan 
from  the  south,  and  with  this  assistance  Lieutenant  Edwardes 
felt  strong  enough  to  offer  to  undertake  the  blockade  of 
Mooltan  for  the  rest  of  the  hot  season  and  through  the  rains, 
if  commissioned  to  do.  The  first  step  taken,  however,  was 
the  capture  of  Dera-Ghazee-Khan,  a  strong  place  on  the  west- 
ern bank  of  the  Indus,  interrupting  his  communication  with 
Bhawulpoor  and  forming  a  strong  outlying  post  to  Mooltan. 
The  governorship  of  this  place  and  the  country  round  had 
been  given  by  Moolraj  to  one  of  his  followers  named  Julal 
Khan,  belonging  to  the  Lugharee  tribe,  to  the  great  anger 
of  a  powerful  chief,  Kowrah  Khan,  a  personal  enemy  of 
Julal. 

Kowrah  at  once  made  his  submission  to  the  British,  and 
sent  his  son  Gholam  Hyder  with  a  contingent  of  men  to  join 
General  Cortlandt,  who  was  moving  with  a  part  of  the  force  to 
besiege  the  town.  On  the  2oth  of  May  Gholam  Hyder  told 
General  Cortlandt  that  he  was  ready  to  go  on  in  advance,  to 
raise  the  whole  of  his  father's  clan,  and  with  them  alone  to 
drive  Julal  Khan  and  the  troops  with  him  across  the  river. 
General  Cortlandt  accepted  the  offer,  though  doubting  much 
Gholam  Hyder's  ability  to  carry  it  out.  However,  the  young 
man  at  once  left  the  column  with  his  contingent  and  rode 
rapidly  on  ahead  to  his  father's  place. 

Having  obtained  the  latter's  consent,  messengers  were  sent 
off  in  all  directions  to  call  upon  the  tribe  to  assemble,  and  the 
same  night  a  desperate  attack  was  made  upon  the  town.  The 
men  of  the  Lugharee  tribe,  who  formed  the  principal  part  of 
the  garrison,  fought  stoutly,  and  the  combat  continued  without 


270  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

success  on  either  side;  but  when  morning  broke  Gholam 
Hyder  Khan  led  his  men  forward  with  such  bravery  that  after 
a  severe  hand-to-hand  contest  he  gained  a  complete  victory, 
killing  numbers  of  the  Lugharees,  among  whom  was  one  of 
their  chiefs,  and  making  another  prisoner.  Some  of  the  gar- 
rison shut  themselves  in  the  fort,  but  capitulated  in  a  few 
hours  on  condition  of  being  allowed  to  cross  the  river 
unmolested.  Moolraj's  force  moved  to  Koreyshee  with  the 
intention  of  crossing  by  boat  and  retaking  the  town,  and, 
failing  in  doing  this,  of  opposing  any  attempt  on  the  part  of 
Edwardes  to  cross. 

They  found  that  the  boats  had  been  removed,  and  the  two 
armies  remained  for  over  a  week  watching  each  other  across 
the  wide  river.  Kowrah  Khan  and  his  son  received  the 
thanks  of  Sir  Frederick  Currie,  and  the  durbar  bestowed  an 
additional  rank  upon  them.  They  shortly  afterwards  joined 
the  army  with  four  hundred  horsemen  of  their  tribe,  who  fought 
gallantly  through  the  whole  campaign.  They  received  no  pay 
for  their  services,  but  at  the  end  of  the  war  were  rewarded  by 
the  grant  of  an  estate  and  pension. 

By  this  time,  although  communications  were  still  uncertain, 
Lieutenant  Edwardes  learnt  that,  for  the  present,  no  British 
force  would  advance  against  Mooltan.  The  commander-in- 
chief  felt  that,  in  the  first  place,  no  confidence  whatever  could 
be  placed  upon  the  Sikhs,  who  would  be  a  source  of  danger 
rather  than  of  aid.  In  the  second,  it  would  take  a  consider- 
able time  to  collect  an  army  sufficiently  large  for  the  purpose. 
Lastly,  it  was  considered  extremely  unadvisable  to  engage  a 
large  British  force  upon  arduous  operations  during  the  hot 
season.  The  rebellion  of  Moolraj  was  against  the  Sikh 
government,  and  the  durbar  at  Lahore  was  called  upon  to 
take  active  steps  to  repress  it.  Later  on  Moolraj  would  be 
called  to  account  by  the  British  for  the  murder  of  the  two 
officers. 


THE  NEWS  OF  THE  MASSACRE  ZiL 

The  Lahore  government  had  accordingly  despatched  three 
columns,  who  were  to  converge  upon  Mooltan  and  blockade 
the  town.  These  were  commanded  respectively  by  the  Rajah 
Sher  Singh,  Sheik  Emamoodeen,  and  Jowahir  Mull  Dutt. 
The  Nawab  of  Bhawulpoor's  troops  were  to  form  a  fourth 
column  and  to  meet  the  others  before  Mooltan.  The  three 
Sikh  columns,  however,  made  very  little  progress,  the  com- 
manders being  each  doubtful  what  the  others  would  do,  and 
uncertain  as  to  the  fidelity  of  their  troops.  The  Nawab  of 
Bhawulpoor  was  perfectly  ready  to  do  his  share  of  the  busi- 
ness, but  he  altogether  declined  to  march  upon  Mooltan  until 
he  saw  the  other  columns  making  fair  progress  in  that  direc- 
tion. 

Lieutenant  Edwardes,  on  learning  of  the  hesitation  of  the 
three  Sikh  commanders,  again  wrote  offering  to  undertake 
the  blockade  of  Mooltan  with  his  own  force  in  conjunction 
with  that  of  the  Nawab  of  Bhawulpoor.  He  had  now  got 
rid  of  his  Sikh  regiment,  which  he  had  just  sent  off  accom- 
panied by  two  hundred  and  fifty  Pathan  horsemen,  and  under 
the  general  command  of  a  Pathan  chief,  to  garrison  the  fort 
of  Mithun  Kote,  where  they  were  out  of  the  way  of  doing  mis- 
chief, and  far  removed  from  the  influence  of  their  co-relig- 
ionists at  Mooltan. 

The  passage  of  trie  Indus  at  this  time  was  difficult  and 
hazardous.  Augmented  by  the  melting  snow  on  the  hills  it 
was  rushing  down  in  a  mighty  river  fifteen  miles  wide,  and 
it  was  impossible  for  either  army  to  cross  in  the  face  of  the 
other.  At  the  beginning  of  June,  however,  the  nawab 
crossed  the  river  and  advanced  towards  Soojabad;  and  hav- 
ing sent  a  pressing  request  to  Sir  Frederick  Currie  that 
Edwardes  should  have  permission  to  co-operate  with  him,  the 
injunction  against  that  officer  crossing  the  Indus  was  removed, 
to  his  immense  satisfaction  and  that  of  Percy. 

By  this  time  the  Pathan  force  had  increased  to  three  thou- 


THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

sand  men,  while  two  thousand  of  the  same  race  had  joined 
General  Cortlandt,  so  that  it  was  possible  to  leave  a  force 
sufficient  to  ensure  order  in  the  district  west  of  the  Indus, 
and  yet  to  carry  a  considerable  number  to  reinforce  the 
nawab.  The  prospect  was  all  the  brighter  since  a  Pathan 
officer  who  had  come  to  Leia  when  Edwardes  occupied  that 
town,  under  the  pretence  of  negotiating  on  the  part  of  Mool- 
raj,  now  sent  him  information  that  the  Pathan  officers  at 
Mooltan,  who  had  from  the  first  taken  no  part  in  the  attack 
on  the  Eedgah,  and  were  altogether  opposed  to  the  war,  would 
desert  as  soon  as  an  opportunity  offered,  and  with  their  men 
join  the  British. 

Slow  as  the  nawab's  advance  was,  it  alarmed  Moolraj,  and 
his  army  was  ordered  to  fall  back  from  the  Indus  and  take 
post  at  Soojabad.  Edwardes  was  well  informed  by  his  spies 
of  the  movements  of  the  enemy.  They  broke  up  their  camp 
by  the  river  before  daylight  on  the  loth  of  June,  and  before 
nightfall  he  had  conveyed  a  portion  of  his  army  across  the 
wide  river  in  the  great  fleet  of  boats  he  had  collected.  Gen- 
eral Cortlandt  was  to  follow  with  the  rest  the  next  morning, 
for  they  had  been  joined  by  so  many  of  the  chiefs  from 
Bunnoo  and  by  zemindars  of  the  dstrict,  that  he  had  no  fear 
of  disturbance  breaking  out  in  his  rear,  so  long  at  any  rate  as 
all  went  well  at  the  front. 

Percy  had  been  very  busy  during  the  halt  at  Dera-Ghazee- 
Khan  in  marshalling  the  native  levies  as  they  arrived,  acting 
as  Lieutenant  Edwardes'  mouthpiece,  and  paying  complimen- 
tary visits  to  the  chiefs  and  thanking  them  for  their  loyalty. 
Bhop  Lai  had  acted  as  drill-instructor  to  the  Pathan  recruits, 
who  were  formed  into  companies  as  they  arrived;  and 
Edwardes  would  have  appointed  him  to  the  command  of  one 
of  these  bodies,  but  he  declined  the  offer,  saying  that 
although  ready  to  aid  at  other  times,  in  the  day  of  battle  his 
place  was  by  his  master's  side,  and  nothing  would  induce  him 


THE  NEWS  OF  THE  MASSACRE  273 

to  leave  it.  Akram  Chunder,  not  being  able  to  speak  the 
Pathan  language,  could  not  be  utilized  in  the  same  way  as 
his  comrade,  and  indeed  the  Pathans  would  hardly  have 
obeyed  anyone  not  of  their  own  nationality  save  an  English- 
man; and  he  therefore  continued  his  usual  work  as  Percy's 
attendant,  looking  after  his  horse  and  cooking  for  him  and 
Lieutenant  Edwardes,  who  took  their  meals  together. 

Percy  was  delighted  when  forward  move  was  at  last  made. 
Lieutenant  Edwardes  had  at  first  thought  of  attaching  him  to 
General  Cortlandt's  column,  but  he  afterwards  decided  to 
take  him  with  him,  feeling  how  great  was  the  comfort  of  hav- 
ing someone  with  him  to  whom  he  could  talk  over  all  his 
plans  and  difficulties,  and  whose  opinion,  however  modestly 
given,  he  came,  as  time  went  on,  to  regard  as  valuable. 

When  the  force  reached  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river, 
Edwardes  learned  from  coolies  who  had  been  forced  to  assist 
in  carrying  the  enemy's  baggage  and  were  now  returning  to 
their  homes,  that  they  had  halted  at  Khangurh.  This  was  a 
disappointment,  as  it  showed  that  they  were  making  for  Soo- 
jabad  instead  of,  as  he  had  hoped,  for  Mooltan;  and  a  few 
hours  later  he  received  a  letter  saying  that  two  thousand  men 
with  four  guns  had  already  been  sent  from  Mooltan  to  Sooja- 
bad,  and  orders  had  been  issued  for  another  two  thousand 
men  to  march  there.  Had  the  nawab  shown  a  little  more 
activity  he  could  easily  have  possessed  himself  of  Soojabad, 
in  which  case  the  army  of  the  Indus  must  have  fallen  back  to 
Mooltan,  against  which  town  the  allies  could  then  have 
marched  without  opposition;  whereas  Moolraj  was  now  con- 
centrating his  whole  force  at  Soojabad,  and  it  was  evident 
that  a  battle  would  have  to  be  fought  there  before  advancing 
against  Mooltan. 

The  next  day  Edwardes'  anxieties  were  greatly  increased 
by  the  news  that  the  column  of  Jowahir  Mull  Dutt,  which  was 
at  last  approaching  Leia,  was  in  a  state  of  disorganization, 


274 


THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 


and  that  one  of  the  cavalry  regiments  had  deserted  and 
joined  Moolraj.  This  fresh  proof  of  the  general  disaffection 
of  the  Sikhs  was  alarming,  especially  as  the  Sikh  force  at 
Bunnoo  was  composed  almost  entirely  of  old  soldiers  who  had 
fought  against  us  on  the  Sutlej.  Fearing  for  the  safety  of  his 
assistant,  Lieutenant  Taylor,  at  that  place,  he  sent  him  orders 
to  leave  Bunnoo  and  establish  himself  at  Dera-Ismail-Khan. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

SEVEN   HOURS   OF   SUSPENSE 

T  IEUTENANT  EDWARDES  pressed  forward  with  all  speed, 
-L'  in  hopes  of  effecting  a  junction  with  the  Bhawulpoor  force 
before  the  Mooltan  army  could  fall  upon  them.  Unfortu- 
nately the  River  Jelum  intervened  between  the  allies,  and  had 
the  rebel  army  used  expedition  they  could  have  annihilated 
the  Bhawulpoor  contingent  before  Edwardes  joined  them. 
The  latter  had  already  made  every  preparation  for  his  advance, 
having  sent  on  messengers  ahead  to  collect  boats  at  Koreyshee, 
with  instructions  that  his  ally  should  avoid  battle  if  possible 
and  retire  before  the  enemy  until  joined  by  him. 

On  reaching  the  Jelum  late  in  the  evening  he  heard  that  the 
Mooltan  force  had  just  arrived  at  a  point  three  miles  from  the 
camp  of  his  ally,  but  had  established  themselves  and  evidently 
did  not  intend  to  attack  until  the  next  morning.  "  You  had 
better  start  at  once  across  the  river,  Groves,  and  see  that  the 
nawab's  force  is  in  a  position  to  defend  itself  if  the  enemy 
attack  before  I  can  get  across.  Its  commander  is  an  old  man, 
and,  as  I  hear  from  our  agent,  Peer  Ibraheem  Khan,  hopelessly 
muddle-headed  and  inefficient.  You  will  find  Ibraheem  him- 
self a  thoroughly  good  and  reliable  officer,  and  he  will  aid 
you  in  every  way.  It  is  he  who  has  got  all  these  boats  col- 
lected in  readiness  for  us.  Two  or  three  of  the  nawab's 
regiments  are  commanded  by  Englishmen.  If  you  find  that 

275 


276  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

the  general  will  do  nothing,  I  authorize  you  to  take  the  com- 
mand out  of  his  hands,  and  to  make  the  best  dispositions  you 
can  under  the  advice  of  Ibraheem.  The  boats  are  coming  up 
fast,  and  I  shall  begin  to  cross  at  daylight  with  the  infantry  to 
aid  the  Bhawulpoor  men  in  keeping  the  enemy  at  bay  until 
Cortlandt  can  get  the  guns  across.  Until  we  have  them  to 
help  us  we  shall  be  at  a  terrible  disadvantage,  for  the  enemy 
have  at  least  twelve  pieces.  Remember  to-morrow  is  the  i8th 
of  June,  the  anniversary  of  Waterloo;  it  is  a  good  omen 
for  us." 

As  Percy  was  about  to  ride  down  to  the  river  bank  a  boat 
came  across,  and  he  stood  chatting  with  Lieutenant  Edwardes 
until  it  arrived.  It  contained  a  messenger  from  Peer  Ibra- 
heem, saying  that  the  force  would  march  down  to  a  point 
opposite  the  ferry  during  the  night  and  so  cover  the  crossing. 

"Could  you  guide  this  officer,"  Lieutenant  Edwardes  said, 
"so  that  he  can  meet  the  army  on  the  march? " 

The  messenger  said  that  he  could  do  so,  and  Percy  with  his 
two  men  and  horses  took  his  place  in  the  boat.  After  two 
hours'  ride  from  the  other  side  of  the  river  they  met  the  head 
of  the  approaching  column,  and  Percy,  hearing  that  Peer 
Ibraheem  was  with  "the  regiment  that  followed,  waited  till  he 
came  along  and  then  handed  him  a  pencil  note  that  Edwardes 
had  given  him,  repeating  to  Peer  Ibraheem  the  instructions 
he  had  already  given  Percy. 

"I  am  very  glad  that  you  have  come,  sahib,"  the  officer 
said.  "  Futteh  Muhommud  pays  no  attention  to  what  is  going 
on,  and  is  in  fact  no  better  than  an  idiot.  I  received  author- 
ity from  Edwardes  sahib  yesterday  to  supersede  him  if  .it  were 
absolutely  necessary,  but  it  might  possibly  cause  discontent 
among  the  troops,  and  it  were  better  to  leave  him  in  nominal 
command." 

The  morning  was  breaking  when  they  approached  the  river. 
When  half  a  mile  distant  they  met  three  thousand  of  the 
Pathans,  who  with  fifty  mounted  chiefs  had  effected  their 


SEVEN    HOURS   OF   SUSPENSE  L'  t  i 

passage  during  the  night  under  the  command  of  Foujdar 
Khan,  a  capable  and  energetic  native  officer  who  acted  as 
Edwardes'  adjutant-general.  A  halt  was  ordered,  and  Percy 
and  Peer  Ibraheem  tried  to  get  the  men  into  line  and  to 
remedy  the  tremendous  confusion  that  prevailed,  baggage 
animals,  waggons,  elephants,  and  guns  being  all  mixed  up  in 
the  column.  There  was  the  more  occasion  for  haste,  as  the 
rising  sun  showed  the  enemy  marching  towards  them.  Their 
object  had  evidently  been  to  take  possession  of  the  ferry  and 
thus  separate  the  two  allied  forces;  but  the  night  march  of 
the  Bhawulpoor  men  and  the  passage  of  the  Pathans  had  fore- 
stalled them,  and  they  at  once  took  up  their  position  on  the 
salt  hills  of  the  village  of  Noonar  and  their  guns  in  a  few 
minutes  opened. 

Two  or  three  of  the  nawab's  guns  were  with  the  greatest 
difficulty  extricated  from  the  confused  mass  and  returned  the 
fire  of  the  enemy,  and  the  Bhawulpoor  men,  uttering,  as  was 
their  custom  before  fighting,  the  name  of  the  rajah  in  a 
sonorous  shout,  rushed  headlong  without  order  or  regularity 
against  the  enemy.  In  vain  Percy  and  Peer  Ibraheem  and 
their  own  officers  shouted  to  them  to  stand  their  ground. 
They  went  forward  at  a  run  until  they  were  checked  by  volleys 
of  musketry  from  the  traitorous  Sikh  troops,  while  the  guns 
swept  them  with  grape.  Though  accustomed  to  irregular 
warfare,  the  nawab's  troops  were  new  to  fighting  disciplined 
soldiers,  and,  confounded  at  the  storm  of  lead  and  shot  to 
which  they  were  exposed,  they  fell  back  in  disorder. 

At  this  time  Lieutenant  Edwardes,  who  had  crossed  the 
river  in  a  small  boat,  arrived  upon  the  spot.  He  found  the 
most  utter  confusion  prevailing;  the  excitement  had  appar- 
ently dissipated  the  remains  of  sense  in  Futteh  Muhommud's 
brain,  and  the  old  man  was  sitting  under  a  tree  counting  his 
beads  apathetically,  while  a  group  of  officers  were  standing 
round  vainly  endeavouring  to  recall  his  shattered  senses  and 
to  get  him  to  issue  orders.  Lieutenant  Edwardes  at  once  took 


278  THROUGH    THE    SIKH   WAR 

the  command.  He  saw  at  once  that  after  the  severe  check 
the  Bhawulpoor  men  had  received,  and  amid  the  confusion 
that  prevailed,  the  battle  was  lost  if  the  enemy  at  once 
advanced.  Turning  to  Peer  Ibraheem,  who  had  just  arrived, 
and  the  chief  officers,  he  pointed  out  that  the  enemy  had 
taken  up  a  strong  position  and  evidently  expected  to  be 
attacked,  and  that  therefore  they  had  time  to  get  the  men  in 
order  and  to  retrieve  the  day. 

The  guns  of  the  nawab  were  old  pieces  of  various  sizes, 
quite  unfit  for  service,  and  there  was  no  hope  of  successfully 
contending  against  the  far  better  guns  and  experienced  artillery- 
men of  the  enemy.  Nothing  could  therefore  be  done  until 
General  Cortlandt  arrived  with  his  artillery,  which  was  a  match 
for  that  of  the  Sikhs.  He  therefore  ordered  that  the  troops, 
after  being  got  into  order,  should  all  lie  down,  and  that  the 
guns  should  keep  up  an  incessant  even  if  an  ineffectual  fire. 
Feeling  confidant  now  that  they  had  a  commander  on  whom 
they  could  rely,  the  officers  hurried  away  to  carry  out  their 
instructions,  and  similar  orders  were  sent  to  the  Pathans,  who 
had  with  the  greatest  difficulty  been  restrained  from  following 
the  example  of  the  Bhawulpoor  men  and  rushing  against  the 
enemy's  position.  A  messenger  was  instantly  sent  off  to 
Cortlandt,  urging  him  to  get  his  guns  across  the  river  with  the 
greatest  possible  despatch  and  to  bring  them  forward  to  the 
field  of  battle. 

Lieutenant  Edwardes  then  rode  along  the  line,  and  was 
loudly  cheered  both  by  the  allies  and  his  own  men.  The 
latter  had  stuck  their  standards  upright  in  the  turf  and  were 
lying  down  in  a  line  behind  them.  When  he  had  made  an 
inspection  of  the  line  and  seen  that  his  orders  had  been 
carried  out,  Edwardes  despatched  another  messenger  to  Cort- 
landt lest  the  first  should  have  gone  astray,  telling  him  that  he 
thought  it  possible  to  hold  the  position  until  three  o'clock  in 
the  afternoon,  but  that  if  he  did  not  arrive  with  the  guns  by 
that  time  the  battle  would  be  lost. 


SEVEN   HOURS   OF   SUSPENSE  279 

It  was  now  but  eight  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  for  sev- 
eral hours  this  body  of  undisciplined  troops  would  have  to 
support  in  patience  the  fire  of  the  enemy,  a  situation  most 
trying  even  for  the  most  disciplined  soldiers.  For  six  hours 
it  continued  without  slackening.  The  enemy's  guns  were 
directed  principally  to  the  right,  where  the  Bhawulpoor  artil- 
lery continued  to  fire  steadily,  but  sufficient  shot  fell  among 
the  Pathans  to  work  them  up  into  a  state  of  desperation,  so 
that  numbers  kept  leaping  to  their  feet  and  demanding  to  be 
led  against  the  enemy  instead  of  lying  there  to  be  killed  with- 
out even  firing  a  shot. 

At  two  o'clock  Futteh  Muhommud  recovered  his  senses 
sufficiently  to  issue  an  order  for  his  army  to  retire,  and  as  it 
was  supposed  that  the  order  was  authorized  by  Edwardes  it 
was  obeyed,  and  without  the  latter  being  aware  of  what  was 
taking  place  the  Bhawulpoor  force  gradually  fell  back.  From 
his  position  on  the  opposite  hill  Rung  Ram,  who  was  in  com- 
mand of  the  enemy,  observed  the  movement  and  at  once 
prepared  to  take  advantage  of  it.  He  sent  forward  his  cav- 
alry to  reconnoitre,  and  moved  his  infantry  and  artillery 
slowly  down  the  hill.  Hitherto  ten  camel  guns  that  the 
Pathans  had  brought  across  the  river  with  them  had  been 
silent,  as  the  men  were  partly  concealed  in  the  jungle,  and 
Lieutenant  Edwardes  was  anxious  to  avoid  betraying  their 
position  and  drawing  the  fire  of  the  enemy  upon  them  by  the 
use  of  these  small  pieces,  which  could  do  but  little  execution 
at  that  distance. 

It  was  now  necessary  to  run  the  risk,  and  the  camel  guns 
opened  upon  the  enemy's  cavalry,  who  cantered  back  to  their 
lines  in  disorder.  Their  guns,  however,  at  once  began  to 
play,  and  their  shot  tore  into  the  jungle,  rendering  it  more 
difficult  than  ever  for  Lieutenant  Edwardes  to  restrain  the 
impetuosity  of  his  men.  The  enemy's  cavalry  soon  rallied 
and  again  advanced.  As  nothing  had  been  heard  of  the  guns, 
and  the  moment  was  most  critical,  Edwardes  ordered  Fouj- 


280  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

dar  and  all  the  chiefs  and  mounted  officers  to  form  into  a 
compact  body  and  charge  the  enemy's  cavalry.  Delighted 
at  being  at  last  employed  on  service  however  dangerous,  the 
brave  fellows  mounted  and  with  a  shout  charged  down  upon 
the  enemy,  and,  in  spite  of  their  inferior  numbers,  drove 
them  back  in  headlong  flight  upon  their  infantry.  They 
rallied  quickly,  however,  and  the  whole  line  again  ad- 
vanced. 

"I  cannot  longer  delay,"  Lieutenant  Edwardes  said  to 
Percy;  "our  only  chance  is  in  a  general  charge.  If  we 
remain  here  we  must  be  beaten,  whereas  if  we  go  at  them 
and  escape  annihilation  by  the  artillery  and  musketry  as 
we  advance  it  is  just  possible  we  may  be  successful." 

He  rose  from  his  seat  under  a  tree  to  give  the  order,  when 
a  bugle  sound  was  heard  in  the  rear.  As  if  by  magic  the 
sound  of  excited  and  angry  talk  along  the  Pathan  line  ceased, 
until  a  minute  later  the  bugle-call  was  again  heard.  . 

There  was  no  mistaking  it.  Van  Cortlandt's  guns  had 
passed  the  river  and  would  soon  be  at  hand,  the  long  and 
terrible  time  of  waiting  was  over,  and  at  last  the  tables  would 
be  turned.  Messengers  were  sent  off  to  the  guns  to  tell  their 
commander  how  urgent  was  the  need  of  their  arrival,  while 
officers  were  despatched  all  along  the  line  of  Pathans  to  bid 
the  men  stand  up,  and,  when  the  word  was  given,  to  advance 
in  good  order  and  in  regular  line,  company  by  company, 
against  the  enemy.  With  shouts  of  delight  the  Pathans  sprang 
to  their  feet,  standards  were  plucked  up  and  waved  enthusi- 
astically in  the  air,  and  then  the  long  line  stood  panting, 
eager  as  greyhounds  in  the  slips,  for  the  order  to  advance. 
Soon  the  rumble  of  guns  was  heard,  and  then  amid  wild  cheers 
the  six  guns  passed  through  a  space  opened  for  their  passage, 
unlimbered,  and  opened  fire  upon  the  advancing  enemy. 

The  effect  was  instantaneous.  The  Sikhs,  believing  that 
the  day  was  won,  were  advancing  in  good  order  through  the 
intervening  fields  of  sugar-cane,  breast-high;  but  as  the  balls 


SEVEN   HOURS   OF   SUSPENSE  281 

sung  overhead  they  disappeared  from  sight,  dropping  among 
the  canes  as  suddenly  as  if  each  had  been  mortally  struck. 
They  had  believed  that  the  only  guns  opposed  to  them,  those 
on  the  right,  had  left  the  field,  and  at  the  discharge  in  regu- 
lar order  of  guns  of  equal  weight  and  calibre,  the  truth  broke 
upon  them  that  the  force  under  the  white  officer  who  had  so 
long  withstood  them  had  crossed  the  river  and  was  ranged  on 
the  field  before  them.  Not  only  had  the  guns  arrived,  but 
Van  Cortlandt  had  managed  to  send  two  of  his  Mussulman 
infantry  regiments  with  them,  and  these,  breathless  with  the 
speed  at  which  they  had  hurried  after  the  guns,  now  came 
clattering  up.  They  were  ordered  to  lie  down  to  the  right 
and  left  of  the  guns,  while  the  Pathans  took  post  behind 
them. 

For  a  few  minutes  the  guns  of  the  contending  forces  dis- 
charged volleys  of  grape  at  each  other,  but  Cortlandt' s  gun- 
ners were  better  trained  and  cooler.  Two  of  the  enemy's 
pieces  were  silenced  and  as  the  men  serving  the  others  were 
in  confusion,  Edwardes  gave  the  word  for  the  Mussulman 
regiments  to  charge.  With  a  cheer  the  brave  fellows  dashed 
forward  at  full  speed,  but  not  so  swiftly  but  that  a  little  party 
of  seven  or  eight  of  the  Pathans'  mounted  officers  dashed 
past  them,  and  charging  the  guns  captured  two  of  them  while 
the  gunners  were  in  the  act  of  hastily  withdrawing  them  before 
the  approach  of  the  charging  infantry.  The  infantry  cap- 
tured the  only  other  gun  which  awaited  the  assault.  During 
the  charge  Cortlandt' s  guns  poured  grape  into  the  canes  where 
the  enemy's  infantry  were  lying.  Hearing  their  own  artillery 
retiring,  the  infantry  abandoned  their  cover  and  retreated  at 
full  speed,  rallying,  however,  at  the  point  where  their  guns 
halted,  when  the  artillery  on  both  sides  renewed  their  duel. 
The  Pathans  were  now  ordered  to  charge,  and  with  a  yell 
expressive  of  their  delight  at  the  prospect  of  avenging  their 
losses  during  the  long  hours  of  the  day,  they  rushed  forward 
through  the  smoke. 


282  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

The  enemy  were  unable  to  withstand  the  onset  of  the  brave 
irregulars  and  the  two  newly  arrived  regiments,  but  hastily 
retired,  falling  more  and  more  into  confusion,  and  pressed  in 
their  retreat  by  the  eager  Pathans,  while  the  nawab's  troops, 
anxious  to  retrieve  their  first  retreat,  now  hotly  pressed  on 
the  enemy's  left.  Something  like  order  was  maintained  by 
the  Sikhs  until  they  reached  the  crest  of  ^the  hill  on  which 
they  had  been  posted  during  the  early  hours  of  the  day. 
Then  they  threw  away  their  arms  and  fled  in  utter  disorder 
towards  Mooltan,  pursued  by  the  nawab's  cavalry,  and  mowed 
down  by  the  guns  that  opened  upon  them  as  soon  as  they 
could  be  got  into  position  on  the  hill. 

Eight  out  of  the  ten  guns  that  they  had  brought  from 
Mooltan  were  captured  by  the  victors.  Some  twelve  hundred 
were  slain,  and  great  numbers  of  the  fugitives  at  once  made 
for  their  homes.  Their  Pathan  cavalry  had,  for  the  most  part, 
remained  inactive  during  the  day,  and  the  heaviest  loss  fell 
upon  the  revolted  Sikh  regiments,  the  Goorkhas  who  had  so 
basely  deserted  Agnew  suffering  very  severely.  The  loss 
upon  the  part  of  the  allies  mounted  to  three  hundred  killed 
or  wounded.  The  enemy's  tents,  ammunition,  and  stores  at 
Noonar  all  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  victors. 

Percy  had  remained  with  Lieutenant  Edwardes  but  a  short 
time,  having  been  despatched  by  him  to  aid  Peer  Ibraheem 
in  keeping  the  Bhawulpoor  men  in  their  position.  When 
the  order  had  come  for  them  to  retreat  he  had  made  his  way 
as  rapidly  as  possible  through  the  jungle  to  inform  Edwardes 
of  what  had  taken  place,  but  arrived  only  in  time  to  see  the 
charge  of  the  mounted  officers. 

"You  must  get  them  back  into  their  places  again,  Groves. 
Here  is  an  order  to  Peer  Ibraheem;  "  and  he  scribbled  a  line 
on  the  page  of  a  note-book  and  tore  it  out.  "  He  is  to  bring 
them  back  into  position  again,  and  to  disregard  any  orders 
that  Futteh  Muhommud  may  give." 

Percy  hurried  away  again,  and  by  his  exertions  and  those 


SEVEN   HOURS   OF   SUSPENSE  283 

of  Peer  Ibraheem  the  Bhawulpoor  men  were  brought  up  in 
time  to  join  in  the  final  charge  and  pursuit  of  the  enemy. 
He  accompanied  the  native  cavalry  as  they  chased  the  fugi- 
tives across  the  country,  and  it  was  almost  dark  before  he 
returned  to  the  scene  of  battle.  Edwardes  shook  him  warmly 
by  the  hand  as  he  dismounted. 

"  It  has  been  a  great  day,  Groves,  but  I  would  not  go  through 
those  seven  hours'  waiting  again  for  any  money  that  could  be 
offered  me;  it  was  an  awful  time." 

"It  was,  indeed,"  Percy  agreed.  "I  thought  at  one  time 
that  it  was  all  up  with  us." 

"So  did  I.  It  was  well  indeed  that  you  were  able  to  bring 
up  the  nawab's  men  in  time.  They  were  not  wanted  for  the 
righting,  but  if  it  had  not  been  for  their  horse  the  rebels  would 
have  got  away  in  some  sort  of  order,  and  their  leaders  might 
have  taken  them  in  a  body  into  Mooltan.  As  it  is,  I  expect 
the  great  proportion  of  them  will  scatter  to  their  homes.  I 
have  just  sent  off  a  messenger  with  my  report  of  the  engage- 
ment to  the  Resident.  It  will  be  a  relief  to  him,  for  although 
he  gave  way  at  last  to  my  entreaties,  I  know  he  thought  I  ought 
never  to  have  crossed  the  Indus.  Now,  if  they  will  but  give 
us  leave,  I  think  that  we  can  take  Mooltan." 

A  few  days  later  Lieutenant  Lake,  who  had  been  appointed 
political  agent  to  the  nawab,  arrived  at  the  camp,  thereby 
relieving  Edwardes  of  the  anxiety  caused  by  the  inefficiency  of 
Futteh  Muhommud,  as  Lake's  auhority  completely  overrode 
that  of  the  general.  He  was,  too,  an  intimate  friend  of 
Edwardes,  and  being  full  of  life  and  animation,  he  was  a  great 
addition  to  the  pleasure  of  the  little  mess.  Marching  forward, 
they  were  joined  by  Sheikh  Emamoodeen  with  the  remains  of 
his  division.  His  Sikh  troops  had  all  deserted  him,  and  he 
had  with  him  but  a  few  Mussulman  infantry  and  a  strong  body 
of  cavalry. 

On  the  ist  of  July  the  force  started  for  its  last  march  towards 
Mooltan.  They  had  received  news  that  the  Sikh  gooroo — a 


284  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

man  regarded  with  the  greatest  veneration — had,  after  consult- 
ing the  stars,  declared  that  day  to  be  a  most  auspicious  one, 
and  that  Moolraj  had  decided,  therefore,  upon  again  giving 
battle.  He  came  out  in  great  force,  and  took  up  his  position 
at  a  bridge  across  a  wide  and  deep  canal.  As  this  could  not 
be  forced  without  heavy  loss,  Edwardes  moved  along  the  west 
of  the  canal  towards  Mooltan. 

Moolraj  followed  on  the  other  side  of  the  canal,  crossed  by 
a  bridge  near  Mooltan,  and  at  one  o'clock  moved  forward 
against  Edwardes  in  order  of  battle.  The  Bhawulpoor  men, 
commanded  by  Lieutenant  Lake,  were  on  the  right;  General 
Cortlandt's  two  regiments  and  ten  guns  were  on  the  right 
centre;  the  Pathan  levies  were  next  to  these,  having  on  their 
left  Sheikh  Emamoodeen's  troops.  The  battle  began  on  the 
right,  Lieutenant  Lake  seizing  some  mounds  in  front  of  him, 
and  placing  his  guns  there  opened  a  heavy  fire  on  the  enemy's 
left.  This  was  returned  by  the  Sikh  guns,  and  in  a  short  time 
the  battle  became  general  along  the  whole  line.  The  village 
of  Suddoosam  was  in  the  centre  of  the  enemy's  position. 
His  troops  lay  for  the  most  part  concealed  in  jungle,  the  guns 
occupying  two  or  three  small  villages.  The  allies  were 
superior  in  artillery,  and  the  rebel  guns  were  presently  obliged 
to  withdraw  from  their  position. 

The  order  was  then  given  for  an  advance,  and  the  whole  line 
pressed  forward.  Village  after  village  was  captured  at  the 
point  of  the  bayonet,  the  Sikhs,  inflamed  with  religious 
ardour,  offering  most  determined  resistance,  favoured  by  the 
nature  of  the  ground,  which  was  largely  covered  with  jungle 
and  date  groves  and  intersected  by  irrigation  canals.  There 
was,  however,  no  check  in  the  advance  A  brilliant  charge 
was  made  by  one  of  Cortlandt's  regiments  led  by  Mr.  Quin,  a 
young  man  who  had  a  few  days  before  come  up  as  clerk  or 
writer  to  Lieutenant  Edwardes.  The  guns  were  captured,  the 
whole  line  then  went  forward  with  a  rush,  and  the  enemy 
broke  and  fled  in  complete  disorder. 


PERCY    IS   CARRIED   OUT   OF   THE   FIGHT   WOUNDED. 


SEVEN   HOURS   OF   SUSPENSE  285 

The  loss  on  the  part  of  the  allies  in  killed  and  wounded  was 
under  three  hundred;  that  of  the  enemy  was  vastly  greater, 
being  the  result  to  a  large  extent  of  the  cowardice  of  Moolraj, 
who  was  the  first  to  leave  the  field,  and  who,  in  order  to  check 
pursuit,  planted  guns  at  the  bridge  over  the  canal,  with  orders 
to  allow  no  one  to  pass.  The  Sikh  fugitives  on  their  arrival 
were  fired  at  by  the  artillery;  the  greater  part  of  the  crowd, 
pressed  hard  by  their  pursuers,  forced  a  passage,  but  hundreds 
were  drowned  in  trying  to  cross  the  canal.  At  the  close  of 
the  day  the  allied  force  halted  for  the  night  within  range  of 
the  guns  of  the  fortress. 

Percy  saw  but  little  of  the  fight,  as  early  in  the  advance  he 
was  struck  by  a  matchlock  ball  while  riding  forward  with  the 
Pathan  cavalry.  He  for  a  moment  lost  sensibility  and  fell. 
When  he  recovered  himself  his  two  followers  were  beside  him. 

"Where  am  I  hit?"  he  asked. 

"  In  the  left  shoulder,  sahib;  it  is  a  bad  wound,  and  will  be 
troublesome,  but  thanks  be  to  Allah,  it  might  have  been  much 
worse.  Now  that  you  have  recovered  I  will  fetch  up  a  dhooly 
with  its  bearers  and  carry  you  on  after  the  others.  The 
white  sahibs  will  know  best  what  should  be  done  with  your 
wound." 

A  few  minutes  later  Percy  was  placed  in  a  dhooly,  and  was 
borne  in  the  rear  of  the  advancing  troops,  and  as  soon  as  these 
halted  for  the  night  he  was  brought  forward  to  the  house  which 
had  been  chosen  by  Edwardes  as  his  head-quarters. 

"  Not  badly  hurt,  I  hope,  Groves?  "  that  officer  said,  running 
out  from  the  house  as  soon  as  he  heard  that  Percy  was  outside. 
"  I  have  been  wondering  what  has  become  of  you,  but  had  no 
idea  you  had  been  hit." 

"I  do  not  think  that  it  is  serious,"  Percy  said.  "My  left 
shoulder-bone  is  smashed,  I  think,  by  a  ball,  but  my  men  were 
close  behind  me,  and  bandaged  it  up;  then  one  of  them 
fetched  a  dhooly  for  me,  and  we  have  been  following  pretty 
close  behind  you  all  the  afternoon." 


286  THROUGH    THE    SIKH   WAR 

"  Lake  and  I  will  bandage  it  up  properly,  and  will  soon 
have  you  comfortable.  It  is  a  nuisance  that  we  haven't  an 
English  surgeon  with  us.  These  native  doctors  are  quite 
useless.  If  it  is  nothing  worse  than  a  smashed  shoulder  I 
think  we  can  manage  well  enough,  and  you  may  hope  to  be 
about  again  with  your  arm  in  a  sling  before  long.  The  only 
thing  we  have  to  be  afraid  of  in  this  hot  place  is  fever.  Still, 
I  hope  that  we  shall  avoid  that." 

During  the  weeks  that  followed  Percy  lay  on  a  charpoy.  • 
The  heat  was  terrible,  although  everything  possible  was  done 
by  putting  tatties  in  front  of  all  the  windows  and  keeping  them 
soaked  with  water;  Bhop  Lai  and  his  comrade  sat  by  turns 
night  and  day  fanning  him,  while  a  punka  made  of  a  door 
taken  off  its  hinges,  was  kept  constantly  going  overhead.  He 
was  not  alone  in  his  misfortunes,  for  Lieutenant  Edwardes  was 
lying,  also  wounded,  in  a  bed  in  the  same  room.  Two  days 
after  the  battle  he  had,  on  the  news  that  the  enemy  were  again 
sallying  out,  hastily  thrust  his  pistols  into  his  belt,  but  being 
engaged  in  giving  orders  he  paid  little  heed  to  what  he  was 
doing.  The  hammer  of  one  of  the  pistols  caught  in  his  scarf, 
and  without  looking  down  he  seized  the  barrel  in  his  right 
hand  to  pull  it  down,  when  the  pistol  exploded.  The  ball 
went  through  the  palm  of  his  hand,  shattering  the  bones  and 
inflicting  a  wound  that  deprived  him  of  the  use  of  his  right 
hand  for  life. 

Fortunately,  twelve  days  later,  an  English  surgeon  arrived 
from  Lahore,  and  at  once  afforded  him  some  relief  from  the 
intense  pain  he  was  suffering  from  the  unskillful  treatment  of 
a  native  surgeon.  Percy,  too,  gained  great  benefit  from  the 
arrival  of  the  doctor,  and  was  in  a  few  days  able  to  be  about 
with  his  arm  strapped  tightly  to  his  side.  Immediately  after 
the  battle  of  Suddoosam  Edwardes  had  written  off  to  Lahore 
begging  that  a  few  heavy  guns  might  be  sent  to  him,  in  order 
that  he  might  undertake  the  siege  of  the  place,  which  he, 
Lieutenant  Lake,  and  General  Cortlandt  were  convinced  could 


V 

SEVEN*    HOURS    OF    SUSPENSE  l.'ST 

be  successfully  carried  out,  Moolraj's  garrison  being  greatly 
weakened  by  desertions  after  the  two  battles,  and  disheartened 
by  the  failure  of  the  gooroo's  prophecies.  The  request  had 
been  refused  by  the  governor-general  and  the  commander- in- 
chief,  whose  opinion  was  that  no  operations  should  be  under- 
taken by  English  troops  until  the  hot  season  was  over. 

He  pointed  out  that  Lieutenant  Edwardes,  who  had  now 
received  the  rank  of  brevet-major  as  a  reward  for  his  great 
services,  had  carried  out  all  that  he  had  proposed  to  do.  The 
districts  to  the  west  and  south  of  Mooltan  had  been  wrested 
from  Moolraj,  and  the  collection  of  revenue  was  going  on 
quietly  and  regularly.  Moolraj  was  couped  up  in  Mooltan, 
and  was  practically  powerless  for  mischief,  therefore  all  that 
was  necessary  was  that  Edwardes  should  carry  out  the  plan  he 
himself  had  originally  proposed,  namely,  to  drive  Moolraj 
into  his  fortress  and  blockade  him  there  through  the  hot 
season. 

A  few  days  later,  however,  Sir  Frederick  Currie,  influenced 
by  a  letter  Edwardes  had  sent  him  before  the  decision  of 
the  government  had  been  arrived  at,  determined  to  take 
upon  himself  the  responsibility  of  ordering  General  Whish, 
with  two  regiments  of  European  and  two  of  native  infantry, 
three  regiments  of  native  cavalry,  three  companies  of  Euro- 
pean and  one  of  native  artillery,  and  two  troops  of  native 
horse-artillery  to  march  from  Lahore.  They  left  on  the  24th 
of  July,  were  taken  down  by  water  to  Bhawulpoor,  and 
reached  Mooltan  on  the  i8th  of  August.  The  heavy  guns, 
however,  did  not  arrive  until  the  4th  of  September. 

In  addition  to  the  pain  Edwardes  had  been  suffering  from 
his  wounds  he  had  been  going  through  a  period  of  great  anxi- 
ety. The  whole  Sikh  nation  was  in  a  ferment.  The  disasters 
that  had  befallen  Moolraj  had  in  no  way  checked  their 
ardour.  Chuttur  Singh,  the  father  of  Sher  Singh,  was  in  open 
rebellion,  and  had,  it  was  known,  been  urging  his  son  in  the 
name  alike  of  patriotism,  religion,  and  family  honour  to  join 


288  THROUGH    THE    SIKH   WAR 

in  a  great  national  effort  to  wipe  out  the  defeats  of  the  last 
campaign  and  to  restore  to  the  Punjaub  its  lost  territory. 

So  far  Sher  Singh  had  resisted  these  entreaties,  and  had 
given  every  evidence  of  ,his  desire  to  remain  faithful  to  the 
government  of  Lahore.  But  from  the  first  he  had  been  almost 
powerless  in  the  hands  of  his  troops.  Numbers  of  them  had 
deserted  and  made  their  way  to  Mooltan.  Constant  commu- 
nications were  kept  up  with  the  rebels,  and  it  was  certain 
that  at  the  first  opportunity  that  offered  the  whole  force  would 
go  over  in  a  body  to  Moolraj.  While  the  battles  of  Korey- 
shee  and  Suddoosam  were  being  fought,  the  divisions  remained 
inactive  at  a  little  more  than  a  day's  march  from  Mooltan, 
and  Moolraj  showed,  by  sending  out  every  available  man  to 
attack  the  force  of  Edwardes,  that  he  had  no  fear  whatever 
of  hostility  on  the  part  of  the  Sikhs.  When,  therefore,  a  few 
days  after  Suddoosam,  Sher  Singh's  army  advanced  and 
encamped  within  half  a  mile  of  the  allies,  a  heavy  burden 
was  added  to  the  various  anxieties  of  the  wounded  English 
commander.  Sher  Singh  himself  visited  him  frequently, 
and  was  profuse  in  his  declarations  of  loyalty,  as  were  the 
two  officers  next  in  command,  Uttur  and  Shumsher  Singh ;  but 
while  the  former  hoped  that  his  troops  would  remain  faithful, 
his  two  lieutenants  were  absolutely  convinced  that  they  would 
all  go  over  to  the  enemy. 

Edwardes  felt  that  should  the  understanding  between  the 
Sikhs  and  Moolraj  be  complete,  and  the  former  fall  upon  his 
flank  while  the  whole  Mooltan  force  attacked  him  in  front, 
his  position  would  be  one  of  the  greatest  difficulty.  It  was  a 
great  relief  to  him  when  two  or  three  more  English  officers 
came  up,  and  he  was  at  last  certain  that  the  orders  he  issued 
from  his  bed  of  sickness  would  be  thoroughly  carried  out  by 
them.  It  was  a  still  heavier  load  off  his  mind  when  General 
Whish  arrived  with  his  force,  and  assumed  the  command  of 
the  siege  operations. 

By  this  time  he  himself  was  able  to  get  about,  and  Percy's 


*Y 

SEVEN    HOURS   OF   SUSPENSE  289 

wound  was  almost  completely  healed.  On  the  7th  of  Septem- 
ber the  plans  for  the  siege  were  arranged  at  a  council  of  the 
chief  political  and  military  officers.  The  trenches  were 
opened,  but  at  a  much  greater  distance  than  usual,  as  the 
ground  outside  the  walls  was  largely  occupied  with  houses 
and  gardens  and  cut  up  by  small  canals.  This  was  all  in  the 
hands  of  the  enemy,  and  it  would  be  necessary  to  advance 
gradually  step  by  step.  On  the  gth  the  fighting  began,  an 
attempt  being  made  to  carry  some  houses  and  ruins  occupied 
by  the  rebels.  The  latter,  however,  defended  themselves 
stoutly,  and  but  little  ground  was  gained. 

The  Sikhs,  who  were  skilled  in  defensive  warfare,  had 
thrown  up  numerous  intrenchments  and  stockades  in  front  of 
our  lines,  but  on  the  i2th  they  were  attacked  and  a  large 
village  was  carried,  but  only  after  desperate  fighting,  some 
two  hundred  and  fifty  men  being  killed  or  wounded  on  the 
British  side.  A  point  was  gained,  however,  close  enough 
to  the  walls  for  the  establishment  of  the  battering  guns,  and 
a  few  days  at  most  would  have  seen  the  British  flag  waving 
over  the  walls  of  Mooltan,  when  suddenly  Sher  Singh  with 
his  whole  army  went  over  to  the  enemy. 

This  defection  entirely  changed  the  situation.  The  addi- 
tion of  the  Sikh  force  of  disciplined  soldiers  to  the  army 
of  Moolraj  raised  it  to  a  strength  far  exceeding  that  of  the 
besiegers.  Even  without  this  addition  it  had  only  been  by 
very  hard  fighting  that  the  British  had  won  their  way  forward. 
These  difficulties  had  now  been  enormously  increased.  The 
communications  might  be  threatened  and  cut  off,  and  even 
the  officers  most  sanguine  of  the  success  of  the  siege  now  felt 
that  it  was  no  longer  feasible  with  so  small  a  force. 

But  their  decision  to  abandon  the  siege  was  arrived  at  chiefly 
upon  other  grounds.  Until  now,  although  Moolraj  had  been 
joined  by  a  great  many  Sikh  deserters,  the  Sikh  nation  still 
stood  irresolute,  and  it  was  hoped  that  the  capture  of  Mooltan 
would  have  decided  them  to  abstain  from  engaging  in  a  con- 


290  ,  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

test  which  was  nominally  one  between  the  maharajah  and  his 
advisers  at  Lahore,  and  Moolraj  their  rebellious  servant.  The 
defection  of  Sher  Singh  and  the  Lahore  army,  of  which  he 
was  commander,  changed  the  whole  situation.  It  was  certain 
now  that  the  Sikhs  would  everywhere  rise,  and  that  the  whole 
of  the  Punjaub  would  soon  be  in  arms.  The  capture  of 
Mooltan,  therefore,  became  a  matter  of  secondary  impor- 
tance, and  it  behoved  General  Whish  to  keep  his  force  intact 
in  view  of  the  campaign  that  must  ensue. 

Moreover,  he  could  now  no  longer  rely  upon  his  communi- 
cations being  kept  open  or  supplies  forwarded,  for  the  Sikh 
sirdars  with  their  followers  might  throw  themselves  on  his 
rear.  Lahore  itself  might  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  Sikhs, 
for  since  the  despatch  of  General  Whish's  force  to  Mooltan 
it  was  very  weakly  garrisoned.  It  was,  therefore,  unani- 
mously decided  that  for  the  present  the  siege  must  be  raised, 
and  the  army,  abandoning  its  new  works,  fell  back  a  couple 
of  miles  and  took  up  a  strong  defensive  position,  expecting 
to  be  attacked  by  the  allied  forces  of  Moolraj  and  Sher 
Singh. 

No  such  attack  was,  however,  made.  Sher  Singh  had  up  to 
the  last  moment  so  strongly  opposed  the  wishes  of  his  troops 
to  go  over,  that  when  at  last  he  gave  way,  Moolraj  suspected 
the  movement  to  be  a  snare  and  refused  to  open  the  gates  of 
Mooltan  to  the  Sikhs.  His  suspicions  were  heightened  by  a 
letter  that  Edwardes  sent  to  Sher  Singh  by  the  hand  of  a 
messenger  whose  fidelity  he  strongly  suspected.  As  he  antici- 
pated, the  letter  was  carried  to  Moolraj,  and  was  of  a  nature 
to  increase  very  greatly  his  suspicions  of  the  good  faith  of  Sher 
Singh.  The  latter,  however,  at  once  issued  proclamations, 
which  were  signed  and  sealed  by  himself,  Moolraj,  and  the 
principal  officers  and  sirdars,  calling  upon  the  whole  Sikh 
nation  to  rise. 

Moolraj  still  declared  that  the  only  thing  to  satisfy  his  mind 
would  be  for  Sher  Singh  to  issue  out  and  attack  the  British 


SEVEN    HOURS    OF   SUSPENSE  291 

position.  This  he  did,  but  as  soon  as  the  English  artillery 
began  to  play  upon  him  his  troops  retired  hastily,  their  con- 
duct increasing  the  suspicion  felt  by  Moolraj  of  their  inten- 
tions. The  ill  feeling  between  the  allies  increased  until  on 
the  9th  of  October  Sher  Singh  marched  away  with  his  army  to 
join  the  Sikh  force  already  in  arms,  plundering  and  burning 
all  the  Mahomedan  villages  through  which  he  passed. 

The  news  of  his  defection  was  followed  immediately  by  the 
revolt  of  the  Sikh  troops  at  Bunnoo  and  other  places,  and  in 
the  course  of  two  or  three  weeks  the  whole  Sikh  nation  was 
under  arms;  and  the  work  that  had  been  done,  and  as  was 
hoped  completed,  at  Moodkee,  Ferozeshah,  Aliwal,  and  So- 
braon,  had  to  be  begun  afresh. 

Percy  Groves  was  not  with  the  British  force  that  fell  back 
from  its  position  four  or  five  hundred  yards  from  the  walls  of 
Mooltan.  Three  or  four  days  before  Sher  Singh's  defection 
Major  Edwardes  had  said  to  him : 

"  Mr.  Groves,  I  think  it  would  be  best  for  you  to  take  up 
your  quarters  with  Sher  Singh's  force.  His  position  is  a  diffi- 
cult one;  he  is  weak  and  vacillating,  and  it  would  be  well  that 
he  should  have  someone  by  his  side  to  whom  he  could  ap- 
peal frequently;  the  presence  too  of  a  British  officer  would 
strengthen  his  authority  with  his  troops.  I  have  no  doubt  he 
is  well  disposed,  but  the  influence  brought  to  bear  on  him  is 
tremendous.  As  a  son  it  would  be  contrary  to  Sikh  notions 
of  honour  to  oppose  his  father,  however  much  he  might  differ 
from  him.  Then  there  are  the  appeals  to  his  patriotism  and 
to  his  religion.  He  knows  that  the  whole  of  his  men  are  in 
favour  of  revolt,  and  there  are  but  two  or  three  of  his  officers 
who  are  not  of  the  same  way  of  thinking.  I  do  not  say  that 
there  is  not  some  danger  in  your  taking  up  your  abode  among 
them,  for  if  he  goes  over  he  will  go  over  suddenly;  but,  even 
if  he  does,  I  cannot  think  that  he  would  suffer  you  to  be 
injured.  He  is  not  a  fanatic,  and  would  see  that  did  any 
harm  come  to  you  he  would  have  no  hope  whatever  of  pardon. 


292  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

You  will,  of  course,  ride  in  here  at  once  should  you  discover 
that  there  is  any  change  in  his  attitude  towards  us." 

Percy  accordingly  moved  across  to  Sher  Singh's  camp,  a  tent 
being  erected  there  for  him.  He  liked  the  rajah,  of  whom  he 
had  seen  a  good  deal  since  his  arrival,  and,  like  Edwardes, 
was  convinced  that  his  assurances  of  loyalty  were  made  in 
good  faith,  and  believed  he  would  be  perfectly  safe  whatever 
might  happen,  and  that  he  was  sure  to  have  warning  of  any 
change  in  Sher  Singh's  intentions. 


CHAPTER   XVII 

WITH    SHER    SINGH 

SHER  SINGH  had  at  once  acceded  to  the  proposal  of  Major 
Edwardes  that  Percy  Groves  should  establish  himself  in  his 
camp.  "Let  him  come,"  he  said;  "he  will  see  that  all  I  say 
to  you  is  true,  and  that  I  am  a  faithful  servant  of  the  maharajah. 
There  is  nothing  I  wish  to  hide  from  him  or  from  you.  I  have 
sworn  to  you  over  and  over  again,  that  I  am  faithful;  and  did 
he  live  in  my  tent,  he  would  see  how  true  I  am  to  my  oath." 

The  rajah,  indeed,  was  sore  that  his  fidelity  should  be 
suspected,  and  in  his  conversations  with  Percy,  after  the  latter 
had  established  himself  in  a  tent  close  to  him,  he  frequently 
complained  that  after  having  so  long  withstood  the  entreaties 
of  his  father  and  the  wishes  of  his  troops,  he  should  be 
suspected.  Percy  did  his  best  to  assure  him  that  personally 
Major  Edwardes  had  no  doubt-  of  his  loyalty,  and  that  he 
feared  only  that  he  might  not  be  able  to  control  the  troops. 

"But  I  have  so  far  controlled  them,"  Sher  Singh  said; 
"  have  I  not  brought  them  here  instead  of  allowing  them  to 
march  into  Mooltan.  Why,  then,  should  I  be  doubted  now? 
If  I  had  wished  to  go,  would  it  not  have  been  better  that  I 
should  have  done  so  before  these  white  troops  arrived?  You 
had  hard  work  in  beating  Moolraj  alone;  if  I  had  joined  him 
before,  Edwardes  and  the  Bhawulpoor  troops  would  have  been 
destroyed." 

293 


294  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

"Had  you  joined  Moolraj,  rajah,  we  should  never  have 
crossed  the  Indus,  nor  would  the  troops  of  the  nawab  have 
been  here.  Major  Edwardes  knows  well  that  you  have  done 
your  best,  and  believes  that  did  your  troops  revolt  you  would 
ride  into  our  camp.  It  is  not  your  good-will  that  he  doubts, 
but  your  power  over  your  soldiers.  We  know  that  they  are  in 
hourly  communication  with  the  enemy,  that  they  go  freely  in 
and  out  of  the  town,  that  messengers  pass  between  them  and 
their  countrymen  who  have  gone  over;  and  it  is  easy  to  under- 
stand that,  placed  as  we  are  here,  and  carrying  on  a  siege  with 
but  scant  forces  for  such  an  operation,  he  cannot  but  be  most 
anxious  regarding  a  force  like  yours  lying  so  close  to  him. 
But  he  has  still  strong  hopes  that  you  will  be  able  to  keep 
them  firm.  Were  it  otherwise,  he  would  not  have  sent  me 
here.  It  is  anxiety,  and  not  suspicion,  that  causes  him  so 
earnestly  to  beg  yeu  to  stand  firm." 

Bhop  Lai  and  Akram  Chunder  were  both  charged  to  learn 
as  much  as  they  could  from  the  soldiers  as  to  their  intentions. 
Their  reports  were  favourable  to  the  rajah. 

"The  soldiers  are  all  for  Moolraj,"  Bhop  Lai  said.  "They 
speak  of.  the  rajah  by  the  nickname  of  'the  Mahomedan.'  It 
is  he  alone  who  keeps  them  here,  for  though  Uttur  Singh  and 
Shumsher  both  support  him,  they  are  almost  alone  among  his 
officers.  Sher  Singh  is  a  powerful  rajah,  and  his  family  one 
of  the  first  among  the  sirdars  of  the  Punjaub.  That  is  the 
reason  why  he  has  been  able  to  keep  them  from  going  over, 
for  they  fear  that  if  they  did  so  in  the  face  of  his  opposition, 
they  would  afterwards  suffer  at  the  hands  of  himself  and  his 
family,  even  if  their  cause  were  victorious.  All  seem  agreed 
that  there  is  no  chance  of  the  rajah's  throwing  in  his  lot  with 
his  father,  and  they  curse  him  as  one  who  is  false  to  his 
family,  his  country,  and  his  religion." 

It  was  then  a  complete  surprise  to  Percy  when,  after  retiring 
to  bed  on  the  night  of  the  i3th  of  September,  he  was  suddenly 
aroused  by  the  entrance  of  a  body  of  armed  men  into  his  tent. 


I 

WITH   SHER   SINGH  295 

They  belonged,  as  he  saw  at  once,  to  the  rajah's  own  body- 
guard, and  were  commanded  by  one  of  his  most  trusted 
officers. 

"No  harm  is  intended,"  the  latter  said;  "the  rajah's  orders 
are  that  you  are  to  be  honourably  treated,  but  I  must  beg  you 
to  rise  and  dress  at  once,  as  we  are  going  to  move  our 
camp." 

Seeing  that  resistance  would  be  altogether  useless,  Percy  at 
once  rose.  After  putting  on  his  clothes  he  saw  that  his  arms 
had  been  taken  possession  of  by  the  soldiers,  and  that  he  was 
in  fact  a  prisoner.  Without  making  a  remark,  he  passed  out 
of  the  tent,  and  saw  his  two  men  standing  there  with  very 
crestfallen  faces,  holding  his  horse,  and  surrounded  by  a  body 
of  Sikhs.  He  mounted,  and  the  Sikh  cavalry  at  once  closed 
in  round  them.  The  tents  had  been  struck  already,  the 
baggage  packed,  and  the  troops  formed  up.  Uttur  and 
Shumsher  Singh  had,  as  he  afterwards  learned,  done  their 
utmost  to  carry  off  the  men  under  their  command  to  the  Brit- 
ish lines,  but  they  had  been  surrounded  by  officers  entreat- 
ing, abusing,  and  threatening  them  and  stirring  up  their 
soldiers  till  they  were  forced  to  abstain  from  opposing  the 
popular  demand. 

Uttur  Singh  had  then  mounted  his  horse,  and  with  great 
difficulty  made  his  way  through  the  crowd,  riding  off  to  carry 
the  intelligence  to  Major  Edwardes,  followed  by  two  other 
officers.  Shumsher  Singh  had  been  carried  off  as  a  prisoner, 
and  was  confined  in  his  tent;  but  the  next  night  he  managed 
to  crawl  out  under  the  bottom  of  the  tent,  and  made  his  way 
in  common  clothes  and  bare -footed  several  miles  to  the  Brit- 
ish camp,  killing  on  the  road  one  of  Sher  Singh's  vedettes, 
who  tried  to  arrest  him.  Two,  therefore,  out  of  the  three 
Sikh  leaders  justified  Major  Edwardes'  belief  in  their 
fidelity. 

On  arriving  at  the  new  place  of  encampment  under  the 
walls  of  the  fort,  Percy  remained  for  an  hour  in  the  centre  of 


296  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

his  guard,  and  was  then  conducted  to  his  tent,  which  had 
again  been  pitched.  Half  an  hour  later  his  two  servants  came 
in;  both  were  deeply  humiliated  that  they  should  have  given 
their  master  no  warning  of  what  was  coming,  and  poured  out 
their  apologies  and  expressions  of  regret. 

"It  is  not  your  fault  in  any  way,"  Percy  said;  "it  was  but 
yesterday  afternoon  that  the  rajah  was  even  warmer  than  usual 
in  his  protestations  of  loyalty,  and  yet  at  that  time  he  must 
have  fully  made  up  his  mind  as  to  his  course.  Had  the 
troops  known  it  yesterday  you  would  certainly  have  noticed  a 
difference  in  their  bearing.  He  cannot  have  issued  any 
orders  until  late  in  the  evening,  and  you  see  he  took  measures 
for  my  protection  by  sending  his  own  bodyguard  to  protect 
me;  and  has  probably  carried  me  off  partly  as  a  hostage  and 
partly  perhaps  with  the  thought  that  I  may  be  useful  should 
circumstances  make  it  necessary  for  him  again  to  enter  into 
negotiations  with  our  people.  How  is  it  we  have  not  en- 
tered the  fort?" 

"  The  Sikhs  intended  to  go  in,  sahib,  but  Moolraj  kept  the 
gates  closed,  and  sent  orders  that  they  were  to  encamp  here 
under  the  guns  of  the  fort.  I  suppose  that  he  is  afraid  of 
treachery.  The  Sikhs  are  very  angry." 

"I  suppose  they  have  taken  your  arms,"  Percy  said. 

"Yes,  sahib;  we  were  sleeping  at  the  door  of  your  tent, 
they  pounced  upon  us  suddenly,  twisting  scarfs  round  our 
mouths  to  prevent  our  calling  out.  They  carried  us  a  short 
distance  away,  and  then  released  us.  They  ordered  us  to 
saddle  our  horses  and  yours,  and  warned  us  that  if  we  made 
the  least  outcry  it  would  be  the  signal  for  your  death  as  well 
as  our  own." 

In  the  morning  Sher  Singh  came  into  the  tent.  "I  am 
sorry  that  I  have  been  compelled  to  make  you  prisoner,  Sahib 
Groves,  but  I  had  no  choice.  Had  I  not  done  so,  the  stir 
among  the  troops  would  have  awoke  you,  and  you  might  have 
carried  the  news  to  your  camp  in  time  for  horsemen  and  guns 


WITH    SHER   SINGH  297 

to  interfere  with  our  movements.  I  did  it,  too,  as  much  for 
your  protection  as  my  own,  for  some  of  the  troops  might  have 
rushed  in  and  killed  you  had  you  not  been  in  the  hands  of  my 
own  guard." 

"I  thank  you  for  that,  rajah,"  Percy  said  quietly;  "but  my 
life  is  of  little  consequence  in  comparison  to  other  matters. 
Until  now  it  has  only  been  a  question  of  the  overthrow  of  a 
dewan  who  refused  to  render  obedience  to  his  government, 
and  whom  you  and  your  army  were  despatched  to  conquer. 
Instead  of  this,  your  army  has  gone  over  and  joined  his. 
You  know,  even  better  than  I  do,  what  that  means:  that  all 
the  Punjaub  will  be  up,  and  that  tens  of  thousands  of  lives 
will  be  lost.  I  can  only  hope  that  you,  like  myself,  are  here 
against  your  will." 

"No,"  the  rajah  said  passionately.  "I  was  faithful,  and  I 
was  doubted.  I  withstood  the  entreaties  of  my  father,  the 
adjurations  of  the  chief  men  of  my  religion,  and  the  wishes 
of  my  army;  but  when  I  found  that  in  spite  of  all  this,  I  was 
suspected,  it  was  useless  for  me  to  strive  longer.  I  am  no 
longer  a  general  of  the  durbar  of  Lahore,  but  a  Sikh  prince." 

"I  am  truly  sorry  to  hear  it,"  Percy  said  gravely,  "for  your 
own  sake,  and  for  that  of  the  Punjaub.  There  can  be  but  one 
end  to  it.  If,  when  the  whole  Khalsa  army  was  intact,  the 
Sikhs  could  not  withstand  the  advance  of  a  weak  British  force 
to  Lahore,  what  chance  have  they  against  such  an  army  as 
will  be  collected  now?  The  last  time  England  astonished 
the  Sikhs  by  her  clemency,  and  by  taking  so  little  when  all 
was  in  her  power.  She  thought  that  her  strength  and  her 
clemency  would  alike  have  made  such  an  impression  that  the 
Sikhs  would  henceforth  be  content  and  remain  in  peace. 
This  time  she  will  assuredly  make  no  such  mistake,  and  I 
consider  that  your  highness'  defection  will  lead  to  the  de- 
struction of  the  independence  of  the  Punjaub." 

"That  we  shall  see,"  the  rajah  said.  "Last  time  but  a 
small  portion  of  our  sirdars  took  up  arms.  You  had  but  to 


298  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   \VAR 

fight  against  troops  who  had  long  lost  their  discipline;  now 
you  will  have  the  whole  of  the  Sikh  nation  against  you." 

"Were  the  Sikh  nation  ten  times  as  numerous  as  they  are," 
Percy  said  quietly,  "  the  end  would  be  the  same.  However, 
as  your  highness  has  now  taken  your  course,  it  is  useless  for 
me  to  endeavour  to  dissuade  you.  I  have  to  thank  you  for 
having  taken  means  to  secure  my  safety,  but  I  should  have 
thanked  you  still  more  had  you  ordered  your  bodyguard  to 
conduct  me  to  our  camp  instead  of-  bringing  me  here." 

"That  I  could  not  do,"  Sher  Singh  replied;  "  it  would  have 
caused  my  own  men  to  suspect  me;  but,  be  assured  that  you 
will  be  well  and  honourably  treated.  I  told  you  I  regarded 
you  as  a  guest  in  my  camp,  and  as  a  guest  you  will  always  be 
treated;  save  in  the  matter  of  your  liberty,  every  wish  you 
may  express  will  be  granted;  and  if  at  any  time  you  have  any 
complaint  to  make,  send  me  a  message  and  I  will  come  and 
see  you  and  set  matters  right." 

In  the  morning,  when  Sher  Singh's  men  were  about  to 
march  against  the  British  camp,  Bhop  Lai  said  to  Percy: 
"There  will  be  no  fighting,  sahib.  The  Sikhs  are  very  angry 
at  the  refusal  of  Moolraj  to  admit  them  into  the  town,  and 
they  say  they  have  not  revolted  in  order  to  fight  for  Moolraj, 
but  for  their  country.  They  may  advance,  because  the  guns 
of  Mooltan  look  down  into  their  camp,  and  they  dare  not 
therefore  refuse;  but  they  will  soon  be  back  here  again. 
They  are  eager  to  march  away,  and  will  do  so  ere  long. 
Mooltan  is  nothing  to  them,  and  they  know  well  enough  that 
Moolraj  is  fighting  for  himself  alone,  and  that  were  the  Brit- 
ish expelled,  there  would  be  another  war  to  decide  whether 
Moolraj  or  the  Sikhs  were  to  be  masters  of  the  Punjaub." 

Until  the  Sikhs  marched  away  on  the  gih  of  October  Percy 
did  not  again  see  Sher  Singh.  The  rajah,  indeed,  sent  him 
a  message  that  contained  the  most  bitter  complaints  against 
Major  Edwardes  for  having,  by  the  letter  that  was  inter- 
cepted, increased  the  doubts  of  Moolraj  as  to  his  loyalty. 


WITH   SHER   SINGH  299 

Percy  replied  that  he,  of  course,  knew  nothing  of  the  letter; 
but  that  a  general  like  Sher  Singh  must  know  well  that  in  war 
it  was  always  a  matter  of  policy  on  the  part  of  a  leader  to 
cause  disunion,  if  possible,  between  allies  opposed  to  him, 
and  that  doubtless  he  himself  would,  under  similar  circum- 
stances, have  acted  in  precisely  the  same  manner. 

There  was  no  actual  prohibition  against  Percy  leaving  his 
tent,  but  the  officer  in  command  of  the  guard,  who  kept  a 
vigilant  watch  round  it,  strongly  advised  him  not  to  do  so. 

"The  rajah  has  given  you  into  my  charge,"  he  said,  "and 
holds  me  responsible  for  your  safety.  But  how  can  I  guaran- 
tee that,  if  you  go  about  in  the  camp?  I  might  surround  you 
with  a  guard,  and  yet  a  musket  or  pistol  ball  fired  by  a 
fanatic  might  hit  you.  It  is  far  better  that  you  should  remain 
in  your  tent,  where  you  are  out  of  sight  of  all,  and  out  of 
their  thoughts.  If  they  once  see  you  about,  the  fanatics 
might  stir  up  the  men  to  demand  your  life,  and  to  insist  that 
Sher  Singh  should  give  us  some  stronger  proof  of  his  hostility 
to  the  English,  as  Moolraj  did  when  he  permitted  the  murder 
of  the  two  English  officers;  and  although  the  rajah  wishes  you 
well,  he  may  be  unable  to  resist  the  demands  of  the  troops, 
who  are  rather  his  masters  than  he  theirs." 

Percy  felt  the  justice  of  the  argument,  and  remained  quietly 
in  his  tent,  where  he  learned  from  his  two  followers  all  that 
was  passing,  as  these  in  their  native  costume  were  able  to  move 
about  freely  among  the  Sikhs,  of  whom  indeed  but  few  were 
aware  that  the  servants  of  the  British  officer,  who  had  been 
carried  off  with  them,  had  also  been  taken.  Both  the  men, 
being  Mahomedans,  burned  with  indignation  at  the  atrocities 
committed  by  the  Sikhs  upon  the  Mussulman  villages  on  the 
line  of  march,  where  they  burned  the  houses,  robbed  the  peo- 
ple, defiled  the  mosques,  and  murdered  the  priests. 

"Is  that  the  way  to  fight  for  the  independence  of  their 
country,  sahib?  Are  there  not  great  numbers  of  Mahomedans 
in  the  Punjaub,  and  is  it  not  enough  to  have  to  fight  the 


300  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

English  without  making  every  Mahomedan  hostile  to  them? 
It  was  not  so  before.  Mahomedans  and  Sikhs  were  of  one 
mind  as  to  the  independence  of  the  Punjaub.  Now  the 
Mahomedans  will  be  as  one  man  in  their  hopes  that  the  British 
will  win.  They  know  that  under  the  British  masters  every 
man  can  worship  in  his  own  way  without  interference;  and 
they  must  see  now  that  if  the  Sikhs  conquer,  they  will  root  out 
the  Mahomedans  from  among  them.  Akram  and  I  followed 
you,  sahib,  and  stood  the  fire  of  the  Sikh  guns  because  our 
lord  had  bidden  us  guard  you,  but  except  for  that  our  hearts 
were  rather  with  the  Sikhs  than  with  your  countrymen,  for 
have  we  not  taken  Sikh  pay  and  fought  under  Sikh  standards? 
Henceforth  it  is  different.  The  Sikhs  have  showed  themselves 
our  bitter  enemies,  and  all  our  hopes  must  now  be  with  the 
English." 

"You  see  no  chance  of  my  escape?  " 

"None  at  all  at  present;  four  guards  watch  day  and  night 
near  your  tent.  We  are  forced  to  picket  our  horses  in  the 
lines  of  the  Sikh  troopers,  and  your  horse  is  placed  among 
those  of  the  rajah,  whence  we  have  to  fetch  it  every  morning 
for  the  march.  A  party  of  sowars  always  ride  with  us  to  fetch 
it,  and  accompany  us  back.  Of  course  we  both  have  knives, 
which  we  have  stolen  at  night  from  sleeping  men;  and  we 
could  get  other  arms,  but  we  do  not  see  that  at  present  we 
could  do  anything  with  them." 

"No,  there  is  no  possibility  of  escaping  in  the  daytime," 
Percy  agreed.  "The  men  who  ride  beside  me  always  have 
chains  between  their  horses'  bits  and  mine,  so  there  is  no 
possibility  of  my  making  a  sudden  dash  for  it,  as  I  otherwise 
would  have  done.  If  I  once  got  beyond  the  range  of  their 
pistols  I  should  have  little  fear  of  being  overtaken,  for  there 
can  be  few  horses  in  the  camp  that  are  a  match  for  Sheik." 

Day  after  day  passed;  the  officer  in  charge  of  Percy  in  no 
way  relaxed  his  vigilance;  the  orders  of  Sher  Singh  being 
most  emphatic  as  to  the  care  to  be  exercised  in  guarding  his 


WITH   SHER   SIXGH  301 

prisoner.  He  learned  from  his  followers  the  rumours  current 
in  the  camp  that  the  Sikh  troops  at  Bunnoo  and  Rhotas  had 
also  mutinied,  and  were  upon  the  point  of  effecting  a  junction 
with  Sher  Singh's  force.  They  were  considered  the  flower  of 
the  Sikh  army,  being  composed  entirely  of  old  soldiers  with 
trained  cavalry  and  artillery.  Sher  Singh  was  marching  to 
Lahore,  and  although  the  people  there  were  for  the  time 
powerless  in  face  of  the  force  that  had  been  hurried  up  to 
hold  the  city  as  soon  as  the  defection  of  Sher  Singh  was 
known,  they  were  reported  as  ready  to  rise  at  the  first  appear- 
ance of  the  army  before  their  walls. 

Some  of  the  Sikh  cavalry  had  been  pushed  on  ahead  of  the 
army,  with  orders  to  destroy  the  bridge  of  boats  across  the 
Ravee,  a  mile  and  a  half  from  Lahore.  They  succeeded  in 
burning  some  of  the  boats,  but  were  then  driven  off  by  the 
1 4th  Light  Dragoons  under  Colonel  Havelock.  So  far  no 
large  force  of  the  British  had  arrived.  A  brigade  with  one 
English  regiment  had  been  pushed  forward,  and  one  of  cavalry 
had  assembled  at  Ferozepore,  and  native  reports  stated  that 
large  reinforcements  were  going  forward  tc  General  Whish 
and  others  advancing  towards  Ferozepore.  Sher  Singh's  army 
moved  but  slowly,  and  it  was  still  the  opinion  of  many  British 
officers  that,  although  constrained  to  desert  us  at  Mooltan,  he 
would  be  glad  to  make  his  peace  as  soon  as  a  strong  British 
army  approached  him. 

At  the  end  of  the  first  week  in  November  the  first  British 
division  under  General  Thackwell  crossed  the  Sutlej  and 
advanced  towards  Lahore,  and  two  days  later  the  commander- 
in-chief,  with  General  Gilbert's  division,  followed  it.  The 
heavy  guns  had  not  yet  come  up,  but  were  only  a  short  distance 
behind,  and  the  general  was  anxious  to  interpose  his  force 
between  Lahore  and  the  Sikh  army,  which  might  any  day 
advance  to  its  attack.  He  remained  for  two  days  at  Lahore, 
Thackwell' s  division  having  already  advanced. 

"They  will  be  here  in  two  or  three  days,  sahib,"  Akram 


302  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

Chunder  said  one  morning  to  Percy.  "  We  have  a  strong  posi- 
tion here  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Chenab,  and  how  the 
English  are  going  to  cross  I  don't  know;  still  they  will  do  it 
somehow,  that  is  quite  certain.  Now,  sahib,  is  the  time.  You 
must  look  to  yourself;  so  long  as  the  Sikhs  are  confident  of 
victory  no  doubt  you  will  be  as  well  treated  as  you  are  at 
present;  but  if  they  are  defeated,  as  we  very  well  know  they 
will  be,  who  could  answer  for  your  life?  Sher  Singh  will  have 
enough  to  do  to  look  after  his  own  safety,  and  even  if  the 
soldiers  did  not  rush  in  and  kill  you,  these  men  of  your  guard 
will  not  want  to  be  encumbered  with  a  prisoner,  and  they 
would  know  that,  after  a  defeat,  no  one  is  likely  to  inquire 
much  about  you.  So  you  must  try  to  escape.  The  worst  of 
it  is,  that  with  your  friends  so  close,  they  will  be  more  watch- 
ful than  ever,  for  this  is  the  time  that  you  would  be  naturally 
trying  to  get  away  to  join  them.  The  officer  looks  so  sharp 
after  the  guard,  that  I  fear  there  is  no  chance  of  giving  them 
liquor  and  making  them  drunk  or  of  drugging  them.  They 
are  forbidden  even  to  speak  to  us  as  we  go  in  and  out.  We 
are  allowed  to  attend  on  you  by  the  rajah's  orders,  but  I  have 
no  doubt  the  officer  is  afraid  we  might  try  to  bribe  his  men. 
Bhop  Lai  and  I  have  talked  it  over  in  every  way,  but  we  can 
see  no  means  of  getting  you  out." 

"  I  can  see  no  way  myself,  Akram ;  the  sentries  are  very 
vigilant,  they  keep  constantly  on  the  move,  and  they  challenge 
anyone  who  approaches  within  twenty  yards.  If  they  were  to 
march  during  the  night  I  would  take  my  chance  of  slipping 
off  my  horse,  for  it  is  impossible,  chained  as  it  is  to  the  others, 
to  dash  through  with  it.  That  is  the  only  possibility  of 
escape  that  I  can  see  at  present." 

"I  can  see  no  other,  sahib,  but  unfortunately  they  never 
have  marched  at  night;  still  they  may  do  so,  and  the  first  time 
they  do  we  might  try  it.  The  worst  of  it  is,  that  we  shall  not 
be  near  you,  sahib.  You  see,  on  the  march  we  always  have  to 
keep  with  the  cavalry,  among  whom  our  horses  are  picketed." 


WITH   SHER   SINGH  303 

"Well,  at  any  rate,  Akram,  let  it  be  a  distinct  understand- 
ing that  if  we  are  suddenly  ordered  to  make  a  night-march, 
and  I  have  no  opportunity  of  speaking  to  you  before  we  move, 
I  mean  to  make  my  escape;  and  if  by  any  possibility  you  can 
do  the  same  you  are  to  do  so." 

"As  we  have  told  you  often,  sahib,  there  is  no  difficulty 
about  us.  They  have  got  pretty  well  accustomed  to  us  now, 
and  believe  that  we  are  all  in  favour  of  their  cause,  though  we 
remain  with  you,  because,  in  the  first  place,  we  are  attached 
to  you,  and  in  the  second,  because  we  have  wives  and  families 
who  are  in  the  hands  of  your  uncle  the  colonel,  and  we  dare 
not  therefore  leave  you.  So  they  have  come  to  believe  that 
we  have  no  wish  to  escape  at  all,  and  pay  no  attention  to  us  on 
the  line  of  march.  Of  course  we  ride  at  the  rear  of  the  regi- 
ment, and  the  last  four  men  were  always  told  off  to  ride 
behind  us;  but  they  have  given  that  up  long  ago,  and  we 
could  easily  drop  behind  without  being  observed,  on  a  night- 
march.  The  difficulty  would  be  to  find  you  after  your 
escape." 

"That  can't  be  helped,  Akram.  If  I  do  escape,  I  will  make 
my  way  back  to  the  last  place  at  which  we  halted ;  and  if  you 
get  away,  do  the  same.  If  we  find  each  other  there,  all  the 
better;  if  not,  we  must  make  our  way  separately  as  best  we  can 
to  the  British  lines,  wherever  they  may  be.  I  will,  if  I  can, 
come  to  the  spot  where  this  tent  was  pitched;  we  shall  all 
know  the  position  pretty  well,  and  ought  to  be  able  to  get 
somewhere  near  it,  even  on  a  dark  night.  Now,  remember 
that  these  are  final  orders,  if  I  have  no  opportunity  to  give 
you  others.  The  first  night  there  is  a  march — whether  before 
a  battle  has  been  fought  or  aftenvards — I  shall  try  to  escape. 
If  I  do  not  appear  at  our  last  halting-place  during  the  night, 
you  are  to  go  straight  on  to  our  lines;  and  if  I  do  not  turn  up 
there  in  the  course  of  a  couple  of  days,  you  will  know  that  I 
have  either  failed  to  make  my  escape,  or  been  killed  in 
attempting  it." 


304  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

"  I  understand,  sahib;  and  you  may  be  sure  Bhop  Lai  and  1 
will  act  according  to  your  orders." 

Two  days  later  there  was  a  great  hubbub  heard  in  the  camp. 
Bhop  Lai,  looking  out  from  the  door  of  the  tent,  said : 

"  The  army  has  come,  sahib.  The  Sikhs  on  the  other  bank 
are  retiring." 

Percy  went  to  the  entrance  of  the  tent,  which  faced  the 
river,  and  stood  there  looking  out.  Numbers  of  horse  and 
foot  could  be  seen  crossing.  A  cloud  of  dust  rose  a  mile  and 
a  half  away,  while  in  camp  there  was  the  deep  rumble  of  guns 
as  these  were  brought  up  to  the  river  to  command  the  passage. 

"They  are  cavalry,  sahib,"  Bhop  Lai  said,  as  amid  the 
cloud  of  dust  there  was  a  sparkle  of  steel,  and  a  body  of  horse 
came  dashing  forward.  Almost  at  the  same  instant  the  crack 
of  guns  was  heard  and  shells  burst  over  and  among  the  Sikhs 
on  the  other  side  of  the  river,  greatly  hastening  their  move- 
ments. The  bed  of  the  river  was  of  great  width,  but  was  now 
for  the  most  part  dry.  On  the  other  side  the  bank  was  high, 
and  from  its  foot  a  very  wide  bed  of  sand  extended  to  what, 
in  the  wet  season,  was  a  green  island  in  the  middle  of  the 
river.  The  stream  itself  ran  on  the  Sikh  side  of  the  island. 

Before  the  British  cavalry  and  guns  came  up,  the  last  of 
the  Sikh  force  on  the  other  side  were  well  on  their  way  across 
the  river,  but  the  guns  were  at  once  unlimbered  and  sent  shot 
after  shot  into  them,  until  they  were  almost  across  and  out  of 
range,  for  the  width  from  bank  to  bank  was  nearly  two  miles. 

Not  content  with  this,  two  British  batteries  moved  down 
from  the  bank,  and  charged  across  the  sand,  from  time  to  time 
firing  at  the  Sikhs  retreating  across  the  ford;  but  when  they 
came  near  the  edge  of  the  river  the  Sikh  batteries  on  the  high 
bank  opened  upon  them. 

"They  will  have  to  fall  back,"  Percy  said;  "the  guns  here 
are  much  heavier  than  theirs,  and  they  can  never  remain  there 
in  the  open  exposed  to  this  fire." 

It  was  not  long  before  the  officers  commanding  the  British 


WITH   SHER  SINGH  305 

batteries  discovered  this,  and  gave  the  order  for  the  guns  to 
limber  up.  Some  confusion  was  visible  among  them.  The 
horses  were  taken  from  two  of  the  guns  and  attached  to 
another. 

"That  gun  has  got  into  a  quicksand  or  something  of  that 
sort,"  Percy  said,  "and  they  can't  move  it." 

The  Sikhs  were  not  long  in  seeing  this.  The  fire  of  their 
guns  was  redoubled,  and  the  infantry  at  once  paused  in  their 
passage  of  the  ford  and  returned  in  great  numbers  to  the  left 
bank  and  opened  a  heavy  musketry  fire. 

"They  will  have  to  leave  the  guns  behind  them,"  Percy 
said,  as  the  artillery  mounted  and  rode  off.  The  guns, 
indeed,  dragged  so  heavily  through  the  deep  sand  that  a 
squadron  of  the  3d  Light  Dragoons  galloped  forward  to  cover 
their  retreat.  Dashing  over  the  sand  they  swept  round  the 
island  where  some  hundreds  of  the  enemy  were  drawn  up,  cut 
their  way  through  them,  sabring  numbers,  and  thenr  in  spite 
of  the  fire  of  six  guns  on  the  opposite  bank,  cantered  back 
again.  They  had  only  one  man  wounded  and  two  horses 
killed.  Other  charges  were  made  by  the  3d  Dragoons  and  8th 
Light  Cavalry,  but  the  Sikhs  took  refuge  in  nullahs,  and  kept 
up  such  a  galling  musketry  fire  that  the  cavalry  drew  off.  The 
Sikhs  now  exultingly  advanced  to  the  abandoned  gun,  and  as 
from  the  river  bed  the  British  force  could  no  longer  be  seen, 
numbers  of  them  made  their  way  across  the  sand,  ascended 
the  high  bank,  and  opened  fire  at  the  troops  halted  within 
rifle-shot. 

"They  won't  be  there  long,"  Percy  said  to  his  men.  "You 
will  see  them  coming  back  quicker  than  they  went  in  a  minute 
or  two:  look  at  that  body  of  cavalry  sweeping  down  upon 
them." 

The  Sikhs,  too,  saw  the  danger,  and  came  rushing  in  a 
confused  mass  down  the  bank.  The  cavalry,  as  he  learned 
afterwards,  consisted  of  the  i4th  Dragoons  under  Colonel 
Havelock,  supported  by  the  5th  Light  Cavalry.  The  impetu' 


306  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

osity  of  the  gallant  leader  of  the  i4th  carried  him  away,  and 
followed  by  his  men  he  dashed  down  the  bank  in  pursuit,  with 
the  intention  of  driving  the  Sikhs  back  again  over  the  river. 
But  great  numbers  had  now  crossed  the  ford;  some  guns  had 
been  placed  near  the  islands,  and  these  and  the  batteries  on 
the  other  bank  opened  a  heavy  fire  upon  the  cavalry. 

Encouraged  by  the  fire  of  their  guns  and  by  their  numerical 
strength,  the  fugitives  now  made  a  stand.  The  horses  of  the 
dragoons  were  already  blown,  and  with  difficulty  made  their 
way  through  the  deep  sand;  but  Havelock  charged  into  the 
middle  of  the  enemy  well  in  advance  of  his  men,  and  disap- 
peared from  their  sight.  They  tried  to  urge  their  horses  after 
him,  but  could  not  break  through  the  infantry,  while  the  Sikh 
guns  still  continued  their  heavy  fire.  Colonel  Cureton,  who 
commanded  the  cavalry,  rode  forward  to  recall  them  from 
their  dangerous  position.  He  himself  fell,  shot  through  the 
heart.  For  a  time  the  unequal  contest  was  continued,  many 
desperate  single  combats  taking  place  between  Englishman 
and  Sikh;  but  at  last  the  i4th  were  called  off,  having  had 
upwards  of  fifty  men  killed  and  wounded. 

"  It  seems  to  me,"  Percy  said,  as  the  last  of  the  cavalry  rode 
up  the  opposite  bank,  "  that  was  a  very  foolish  charge.  Sup- 
pose they  had  driven  the  Sikhs  across  the  river,  they  could  not 
have  stayed  to  guard  the  ford  with  all  these  guns  playing  upon 
them,  and  the  Sikhs  could  have  recrossed  directly  they  had 
retired.  It  seems  a  pure  waste  of  life." 

So  thought  many  others.  The  charge  was  as  rash  and  ill- 
considered  as  that  of  Balaclava.  Colonel  Havelock  paid  for 
his  mistake  by  his  life,  just  as  did  Nolan,  who  gave  the  order 
that  led  to  the  charge  of  the  Light  Cavalry  at  Balaclava. 

The  Sikhs  were  in  high  spirits  at  the  advantage  they  had 
gained,  and  complete  confidence  in  themselves  took  the  place 
of  the  doubt,  that  a  good  many  of  them  had  felt,  of  their  power 
of  resisting  the  British.  This  increased,  as  day  after  day 
passed,  and  no  forward  movement  was  made  from  the  opposite 


WITH   SHER  SINGH  307 

bank.  It  could  be  seen,  however,  that  the  force  there  had 
been  largely  augmented,  and  that  batteries  were  in  course  of 
erection  at  several  points.  The  Sikh  guns  fired  at  times  at 
the  working  parties,  but  the  distance  was  too  great  for  the  fire 
to  be  effective.  Bodies  of  Sikh  cavalry  crossed  the  river  at 
other  points,  and  often  rode  round  the  rear  of  the  British 
lines,  occasionally  cutting  off  men  who  had  straggled  too  far 
out  of  camp,  and  then  riding  off  before  the  English  cavalry 
could  mount  and  pursue  them.  A  few  soldiers  who  were  taken 
alive  were  carried  to  the  camp,  where  they  were  well  treated 
by  Sher  Singh,  and  were  sent  back  to  the  British  lines  bearing 
a  communication  from  the  rajah  expressive  of  a  desire  for 
peace. 

But  the  time  had  passed  for  negotiations.  It  was  necessary 
for  the  peace  of  India  that  the  Sikh  strength  should  be  broken 
once  and  for  all,  and  the  answer  sent  to  the  rajah  was  that  the 
commander-in-chief  could  not  treat  with  men  in  arms  against 
him.  A  week  passed  after  the  cavalry  fight,  and  then  it  became 
known  in  the  Sikh  camp  that  the  heavy  guns  for  which  the 
British  had  been  waiting  had  arrived. 

"  I  do  not  see  the  use  of  those  batteries  they  are  erecting  on 
the  opposite  bank,"  Akram  Chunder  remarked,  as,  standing 
at  the  door  of  the  tent,  they  watched  what  was  going  on.  The 
Sikhs  too  had  been  working  hard;  strong  works  had  been 
erected  commanding  the  ford,  and  a  number  of  guns  placed 
there  in  position. 

"  I  do  not  see  any  good  in  it  either,  Akram ;  the  guns  are 
too  far  off  to  be  of  any  use  whatever  in  covering  the  advance 
of  a  column  trying  to  cross.  I  do  not  think  it  is  possible  to 
ford  the  river  in  the  face  of  such  a  fire  as  will  be  concentrated 
upon  them  if  they  attempt  it." 

"Then  what  will  they  do,  sahib?  " 

"  I  should  say  they  would  send  a  force  either  up  or  down 
the  river  to  cross  at  some  other  point  ten  or  twenty  miles 
away.  When  they  have  got  across  they  will  either  intrench 


308  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

themselves  there  and  defend  the  ford  until  the  whole  army 
can  cross,  or  they  will  march  this  way  and  attack  the  camp 
while  the  army  opposite  tries  to  cross  the  river." 

"There  would  be  great  risk  in  that,  sahib,  for  the  Sikhs 
could  throw  their  whole  force  on  those  that  have  crossed  and 
destroy  it  before  they  could  get  any  aid  from  their  friends 
on  the  other  side." 

"  Yes,  it  would  be  very  dangerous,  too  dangerous  to  try,  I 
should  say,  against  another  European  force;  but  you  see, 
Akram,  we  have  been  so  accustomed  to  win  battles  in  India 
that  we  feel  quite  confident  of  victory  even  when  the  odds  are 
three  or  four  to  one  against  us." 

Early  in  the  morning  of  the  ist  of  December  Percy  heard 
an  unusual  stir  in  the  Sikh  camp. 

"What  is  the  matter?"  he  asked  the  officer  of  the  guard 
when  the  latter  as  usual  came  in  for  a  talk  with  him. 

"  A  peasant  came  across  before  daylight  with  the  news  that 
a  large  force  of  your  people  have  marched  somewhere  down 
the  river.  We  had  thought  that  they  might  try  to  cross  at  the 
ford  of  Ghuree-kee  Puttum,  and  were  ready  to  receive  them, 
but  they  have  not  gone  there.  It  is  supposed  they  have  gone 
to  Wuzeerabad." 

"How  far  is  that  away?  " 

"Twenty-four  miles." 

"  Have  you  any  force  there  ?  " 

"  No,  it  is  a  very  bad  ford,  and  unless  they  get  some  boats 
they  can  hardly  cross  there ;  but  we  would  not  stop  them  if 
we  could.  How  the  British,  who  know  so  much  of  the  art  of 
war,  can  throw  themselves  like  this  into  our  hands  is  more 
than  we  can  tell.  We  shall  let  them  march  up  some  miles,  so 
that  they  can  no  longer  retreat  to  the  ford,  then  we  shall  fall 
upon  them  and  exterminate  them.  We  know  their  force,  for 
the  peasant,  who  was  awakened  by  the  noise  made  by  the 
camp-followers  and  the  growling  of  the  camels  and  the  rum- 
bling of  guns,  crept  up  and  counted  them  as  they  passed. 


WITH   SHER   SINGH  309 

There  were  five  batteries,  two  of  them  native;  five  regiments 
of  cavalry,  four  of  them  native;  two  white  regiments  of  foot, 
and  five  regiments  and  a  half  of  Sepoys.  If  you  put  them  at 
five  hundred  men  to  each  regiment,  there  are  less  than  four 
thousand  foot.  What  is  that  against  the  force  we  can  bring 
against  them?  They  will  get  to  Wuzeerabad  to-day,  but  it  is 
a  long  march.  The  white  troops  will  not  be  ready  for  much 
at  the  end  of  it,  and  few  will  get  across  to-night.  It  will  be 
mid-day  to-morrow  before  they  are  all  over,  even  if  they  have 
boats,  so  that  at  most  they  will  not  arrive  nearer  than  twelve 
miles  by  to-morrow  night.  The  next  day  we  shall  finish  with 
them." 

Percy  thought  it  was  as  well  to  keep  to  himself  his  convic- 
tion that  the  Sikhs  would  not  find  it  so  easy  a  business  as  they 
anticipated;  yet  he  saw  that  unless  our  main  army  moved 
across  to  the  attack,  and  so  occupied  a  large  portion  of  the 
Sikh  force,  or  else  considerably  reinforced  that  advancing  up 
the  river  bank,  the  position  of  the  latter  was  indeed  a  peril- 
ous one.  But  he  still  felt  confident  in  their  power  to  resist 
an  attack  made  upon  them. 

"I  should  be  glad,"  he  said  to  his  two  followers,  as  he 
talked  the  matter  over  during  the  day,  "  if  they  would  move 
this  tent  of  ours  somewhere  farther  back  from  the  bank.  That 
battery  below  us  is  sure  to  come  in  for  its  share  of  the  fire 
from  the  guns  on  the  other  side,  and  any  ball  that  goes  too 
high  is  as  likely  as  not  to  pass  through  this  tent." 

"You  may  be  sure  that  our  guard  won't  wait  here  when  that 
happens,  sahib;  they  may  leave  the  tent  standing,  but  they 
will  certainly  march  themselves  and  you  off  out  of  range." 

Late  in  the  afternoon  a  heavy  fire  was  opened  by  the  bat- 
teries on  the  opposite  bank,  and  as  the  shells  exploded,  some 
over  the  Sikh  batteries,  some  farther  back  over  the  bank,  a 
great  hubbub  arose.  The  artillerymen  ran  down  to  their  guns 
and  replied  to  the  fire.  Drums  and  bugles  called  the  troops 
under  arms,  orders  were  shouted  in  all  directions,  and  the 


310  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

noises  of  the  horses  and  baggage  animals  added  to  the  uproar. 
The  guard  at  once  ran  up  and  surrounded  the  tent. 

"Come  out,  sahib,"  the  officer  said,  "we  are  going  to  pull 
it  down  at  once." 

"All  the  better,"  Percy  replied;  "I  have  no  desire  to  be 
shot  by  my  friends." 

The  tent  was  speedily  lowered,  and  it  and  its  contents 
carried  by  the  men  half  a  mile  from  the  bank  and  there  re- 
erdcted.  All  the  other  tents  along  the  bank  were  similarly 
removed. 

As  Percy  had  foreseen,  the  fire  from  the  distant  guns 
inflicted  but  little  damage  upon  the  Sikh  batteries,  so  these, 
after  replying  for  a  short  time,  ceased  to  waste  their  ammuni- 
tion, and  the  men  retired  behind  the .  shelter  of  the  bank, 
where  they  remained  until  the  British  fire  ceased. 

Upon  the  following  morning  Percy  learned  from  the  officer 
of  his  guard  that  a  Sikh  horseman,  who  had  been  sent  down 
the  river,  had  reported  that  only  a  battery  of  artillery,  two 
regiments  of  cavalry,  and  a  brigade  of  infantry  had  crossed  on 
the  previous  night,  some  wading  the  ford  and  others  being 
brought  over  in  boats,  by  which  the  guns  had  been  conveyed 
across. 

At  night  he  heard  that  it  was  two  o'clock  before  all  had 
crossed  and  the  march  began,  and  they  would  probably  halt 
at  Doorewal,  which  was  twelve  miles  on  the  way,  somewhere 
about  nightfall.  The  Sikhs  reported  that  the  cavalry  were 
scouting  in  their  front  and  on  their  left  flank,  and  that  the 
troops  were  marching  in  several  columns,  so  that  they  could 
at  once  open  out  into  order  of  battle  if  attacked.  The 
guards  were  in  high  spirits  that  night,  and  sat  round  a  fire 
laughing  and  talking  until  morning.  The  vigilance  of  the 
sentries,  however,  was  in  no  way  relaxed,  and  the  officer  sev- 
eral times  peeped  into  the  tent  to  see  that  all  was  right. 

Before  daybreak  there  was  a  hum  of  movement  in  the  camp, 
and  Percy  knew  that  the  Sikhs  were  mustering  for  the  attack. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

REJOINING 

AS  Percy  went  to  the  door  of  his  tent  he  saw  the  Sikhs  mov- 
ing off  in  solid  bodies. 

"Those  are  the  Bunnoo  regiments,"  the  officer  of  his  guard 
said,  "they  are  our  best.  Some  of  Sher  Singh's  regiments 
are  good,  but  they  are  not  equal  to  those  from  Bunnoo.  They 
have  been  drilled  by  Van  Cortlandt,  and  march  as  truly  and 
well  as  the  best  regiments  of  the  Feringhees.  They  are  going 
to  take  their  revenge  to-day.  Every  man  of  them  fought  at 
Ferozeshah  or  Sobraon,  many  at  both,  and  they  will  wipe  out 
those  defeats  to-day.  A  very  strong  force  is  going,  nearly  the 
whole  indeed.  What  do  we  want  men  here  for?  They  will 
never  venture  to  cross  from  the  opposite  side  while  our  guns 
sweep  the  ford.  Besides,  there  is  a  regiment  left  to  guard  it, 
and  the  Feringhees  cannot  tell  that  Sher  Singh  has  marched 
with  his  whole  force  to  exterminate  their  comrades  on  this 
bank.  You  will  not  be  lonely  any  more,  for  to-night  there 
will  be  many  prisoners  here,  for  those  who  throw  down  their 
arms  may  be  spared;  I  know  not  the  orders  Sher  Singh  has 
issued,  still  mercy  is  sure  to  be  shown  to  a  few.  By  the  way, 
I  have  just  seen  a  man  who  has  come  from  the  river  bank,  and 
he  says  that  during  the  night  your  people  have  thrown  up  two 
batteries  about  midway  between  their  bank  and  the  river,  so 
as  to  command  the  ford.  Doubtless  they  feared  that,  know- 

311 


312  THROUGH    THE    SIKH   WAR 

ing  they  would  be  so  weakened,  we  should  march  across  and 
destroy  them.  That  was  indeed  the  plan  advocated  by  many 
of  our  leaders,  but  it  was  thought  best  to  destroy  this  army 
first;  for  you  see  we  can  fall  upon  them  when  entangled  in 
rice-fields  and  jungle,  whereas  here  we  should  suffer  from  the 
batteries  on  their  bank  before  we  came  to  close  quarters." 

As  the  officer  had  been  very  civil  to  him  throughout  the 
march,  Percy  abstained  from  dashing  his  confidence  by  the 
expression  of  a  doubt. 

"You  are  going  to  fall  upon  them  during  the  march?  " 

"  Yes,  and'all  the  regular  horse  are  to  ride  round  and  capture 
their  baggage  and  then  charge  down  on  their  rear.  The  river 
is  on  their  right,  and  not  a  man  ought  to  escape  if  the  affair 
is  well  managed." 

Throughout  the  day  the  guns  of  the  British  batteries  across 
the  river  again  maintained  their  fire,  the  Sikhs  making  no 
reply.  Percy  from  time  to  time  listened  attentively,  hoping 
to  hear  the  rattle  of  musketry  that  would  tell  him  that  Lord 
Gough  was  making  a  vigorous  attempt  to  cross  the  river  in 
order  to  give  aid  to  the  little  column  that  was  cut  off  from 
him.  He  heard  that  the  British  were  constructing  two  bat- 
teries close  to  the  river,  and  was  astonished  that  they  should 
be  permitted  to  do  this  without  interruption. 

"I  was  mistaken,"  the  officer  said  to  him  at  eight  o'clock. 
"I  thought  that  the  batteries  were  still  manned,  and  that  a 
regiment  was  there.  I  find  that  the  guns  have  been  withdrawn, 
and  that  every  man  has  gone  to  the  fight.  It  is  very  strange 
that,  seeing  everything  is  silent,  the  English  do  not  send  a 
party  across  the  river  to  reconnoitre.  Their  commander  must 
be  asleep,"  the  Sikh  said  contemptuously. 

"  But  why  has  the  passage  been  left  open  to  them?  " 

"What  do  we  care  if  they  do  cross?  Your  tent  is  almost 
the  only  one  left  standing.  If  we  saw  them  appear  on  the 
river  bank  we  should  mount  and  ride  at  once;  there  are  the 
horses  all  standing  ready.  Almost  all  the  baggage  is  moved 


REJOINING  313 

away.  I  think  Sher  Singh  would  be  glad  if  they  did  cross 
to-day,  then  we  should  come  back  and  attack  them  in  the 
morning.  With  the  river  in  their  rear,  how  many  would 
escape?" 

It  was  past  mid-day  when  an  exclamation  burst  from  Percy's 
guard,  as  the  boom  of  a  gun  some  six  or  seven  miles  away  was 
heard. 

"The  battle  has  begun,"  the  Sikhs  exclaimed. 

There  was  an  animated  discussion  among  them  as  to  the 
distance,  but  it  was  agreed  at  last  that  it  must  be  somewhere 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  village  of  Sadoolapore,  which  was 
situated  close  to  a  ford,  and  the  British  had  probably  halted 
there  in  order  to  have  a  loophole  for  retreat.  The  halt  had 
indeed  been  made  at  this  point  in  order  that  the  infantry 
brigade  of  General  Godby,  which  the  commander-in-chief 
had  sent  to  reinforce  them,  might  cross  the  ford;  they  had 
not,  however,  as  yet  arrived.  The  column  having  halted,  pre- 
pared to  take  their  breakfast.  While  so  engaged  a  cannon- 
shot  fell  close  by,  and  Nicholson's  irregular  Pathan  horse  at 
once  went  out  in  the  direction  from  which  the  shot  was  fired, 
and  were  soon  in  contact  with  the  enemy,  whose  artillery 
opened  a  heavy  fire. 

The  troops  at  once  formed  up  for  battle.  In  front  of  them 
were  three  small  villages  surrounded  by  plantations,  which 
afforded  an  admirable  cover  for  the  enemy,  and  would  have 
enabled  them  to  mass  unperceived  and  to  pour  down  upon  our 
line.  Seeing  the  disadvantage  of  the  position,  General  Thack- 
well,  who  was  in  command  of  the  force,  ordered  them  to  fall 
back  so  as  to  have  clear  ground  in  front  of  them.  The  move- 
ment caused  shouts  of  exultation  among  the  unseen  enemy, 
who  construed  it  into  a  movement  of  retreat.  Some  time, 
however,  elapsed  before  the  Sikh  forces  had  all  assembled,  but 
as  soon  as  they  had  done  so  their  batteries  opened  fire,  while 
yells  of  defiance,  mingled  with  the  blowing  of  horns  and  the 
beating  of  drums,  added  to  the  tumult  of  cannon  and  musketry. 


314  THROUGH   THE   SIKH  WAR 

The  British  infantry  lay  down  on  the  ground,  and  the  storm 
of  iron  and  lead  swept  over  them  almost  harmlessly.  Great 
bodies  of  the  Sikh  cavalry  now  showed  on  both  flanks,  with 
the  evident  intention  of  penetrating  to  the  rear,  but  the 
cavalry,  aided  by  the  horse-artillery,  met  and  checked  them 
on  both  flanks;  while  three  other  batteries,  placed  in  the 
intervals  of  the  infantry  regiments,  replied  to  those  of  the 
enemy,  and  their  accurate  fire  caused  considerable  confusion 
among  the  Sikh  gunners,  whose  fire  gradually  slackened  and 
at  last  ceased,  though  the  infantry  still  maintained  their  posi- 
tion in  front. 

The  extreme  rapidity  with  which  for  two  hours  the  British 
artillery  worked  their  guns  had  almost  exhausted  the  supply  of 
ammunition  they  had  brought  with  them,  and  when  General 
Thackwell  consulted  his  officers  whether  he  should  now  take 
the  offensive  and  attack  the  Sikhs,  the  reply  was  an  almost 
unanimous  negative.  It  was  about  four  o'clqck  in  the  after- 
noon, and  there  were  but  two  hours'  daylight  left.  The 
enemy's  infantry  were  intact,  and  were  in  full  force  to  the 
front.  The  three  villages  constituted  a  very  strong  position. 
The  nature  of  the  ground  beyond  was  altogether  unknown,  but 
it  was  believed  that  sugar-cane  fields  extended  to  the  Sikh 
intrenchments;  the  troops  were  already  exhausted  with  the 
long  day's  exposure  to  the  sun.  Godby's  brigade  had  not  yet 
crossed,  and  with  but  two  white  regiments  it  would  have  been 
perilous  indeed  to  engage  in  a  conflict  on  unknown  ground 
against  an  enemy  of  vastly  superior  strength,  and  containing 
the  Bunnoo  regiments,  the  flower  of  the  Sikh  army.  The 
force,  too,  was  already  weakened  by  the  strong  detachment 
covering  the  head  of  the  ford,  and  by  a  larger  body  detached 
to  guard  the  baggage  in  the  rear.  It  was  therefore  determined 
to  rest  for  the  night  in  the  position  occupied,  and  to  renew 
the  engagement  in  the  morning,  when  it  was  hoped  that 
Godby's  brigade  would  have  joined.  The  loss  had  been  but 
small,  twenty-one  men  killed  and  fifty-one  wounded,  most  of 


REJOINING  315 

whom  belonged  to  the  artillery,  against  which  arm  the  Sikh 
fire  had  been  mainly  directed. 

To  the  surprise  and  disappointment  of  the  British  it  was 
discovered  in  the  morning  that  the  Sikhs  had  evacuated  their 
position  in  front  of  them.  Godby's  brigade  had  been  all 
night  crossing  the  river  in  three  or  four  little  boats,  and 
joined  the  force  at  nine  o'clock.  Upon  advancing  into  the 
villages  it  was  found  that  the  Sikh  loss  had  been  very  large, 
great  numbers  of  dead  being  discovered  here  and  among  the 
sugar-canes  behind.  The  cavalry  were  at  once  sent  ahead  to 
endeavour  to  discover  the  course  taken  by  the  Sikhs,  and 
learned  from  villagers  that  they  had  passed  during  the  night 
along  the  roads  leading  towards  the  Jhelum  river;  but  though 
the  cavalry  pressed  far  in  pursuit  they  did  not  succeed  in 
coming  up  with  them.  The  infantry  marched  twelve  miles 
in  the  direction  they  had  taken,  and  then  halted  for  the 
night.  It  was  not  until  that  morning  that  Lord  Gough  sent  a 
small  force  across  the  river  and  discovered  that  the  Sikhs  had 
left  thirty-six  hours  before. 

For  four  hours  Percy  had  listened  anxiously  to  the  continu- 
ous roll  of  artillery.  When  it  ceased  at  four  o'clock  the  men 
round  him  shouted  triumphantly  that  all  was  over,  and  the 
Feringhees  annihilated;  but  no  news  had  been  received,  when 
Percy,  feeling  worn  out  with  the  excitement  and  the  worry  of 
the  day,  threw  himself  down  on  his  bed.  At  ten  o'clock  he 
heard  a  horse  approaching  at  a  gallop.  A  few  words  were 
said,  of  which  he  could  not  gather  the  import,  but  as  they 
were  followed  by  a  volley  of  execrations  his  heart  gave  a  bound 
of  delight,  for  he  felt  that  the  Sikhs  had  failed  in  their  attack. 

Two  minutes  later  the  officer  entered  his  tent.  "You  are 
to  mount  and  ride  with  us  at  once,  sahib,"  he  said  shortly. 

Percy  asked  no  questions,  feeling  that  silence  was  at  pres- 
ent the  safest  policy.  His  first  thought  was  for  his  men,  who 
always  slept  in  the  camp  of  the  sowars,  where  his  horse  was 
picketed.  He  had  not  seen  them  all  day,  and  had  no  doubt 


316  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

that  they  had  been  obliged  to  accompany  the  cavalry  when 
they  moved  off  at  daybreak.  He  mounted  his  horse,  which 
was  as  usual  linked  to  those  of  the  troopers  on  either  side  of 
it,  and  the  party  moved  off  silently,  leaving  the  tent  standing. 
For  an  hour  but  few  words  were  spoken  beyond  occasional 
muttered  execrations  among  the  Sikhs.  Then  the  officer  rode 
up  beside  him,  taking  the  chain  from  the  trooper  on  his  right 
hand  side. 

"I  was  wrong,  sahib;  we  have  not  eaten  up  the  Feringhees 
as  I  expected.  It  has  been  a  drawn  battle.  Your  guns  fired 
at  us,  and  we  fired  at  them;  many  were  killed  on  both  sides. 
Our  infantry  never  attacked,  nor  did  yours;  but  we  suffered 
most,  for  your  infantry  lay  down  on  the  ground  like  cowards, 
while  ours  stood  up  like  men;  still  they  could  not  advance 
under  the  terrible  fire  of  your  guns.  So  the  combat  ceased, 
and  we  march  to-night  to  take  up  a  new  position  on  the 
Jhelum,  where  it  is  all  bush  and  jungle." 

"  But  why  should  you  fall  back  if  the  battle  is  an  indecisive 
one?" 

"  Because,  sahib,  we  felt  too  sure  of  victory.  We  left  the 
ford  open  here,  thinking,  as  I  told  you,  that  after  we  had 
crushed  the  troops  we  went  out  to  fight  we  should  march  back 
here  and  destroy  the  force  from  across  the  river.  Our  calcu- 
lations have  been  wrong;  we  have  not  won  the  battle;  and 
the  blind  people  on  the  other  side  have  not  crossed,  though 
they  must  have  seen  that  there  was  neither  a  man  nor  a  gun 
to  resist  them.  To-morrow  they  must  surely  discover  it,  and 
then  when  they  cross  we  should  find  ourselves  between  two 
fires;  so  there  was  nothing  to  do  but  to  fall  back.  The  next 
time  we  will  fight  on  our  ground,  in  thick  jungle,  where  the 
white  cavalry  cannot  act  nor  the  gunners  discover  our  posi- 
tion; then  you  will  see." 

For  three  hours  longer  they  rode  on.  The  officer  had 
ceased  to  talk,  the  men  were  all  silent,  and  were,  Percy 
guessed,  half  asleep  on  their  horses.  The  night  was  so  dark 


REJOINING 


that  he  could  scarce  make  out  the  figures  riding  beside  him. 
It  went  to  his  heart  to  leave  Sheik,  and  he  wondered  whether 
he  could-  lean  forward  and  unbuckle  the  chains.  However, 
he  abandoned  the  idea,  for  even  could  he  do  so  the  rattle  of 
the  ends  of  the  falling  chains  would  at  once  rouse  the  men. 
He  knew  nothing  of  the  country  on  either  side  of  the  road 
they  were  following,  and  would  assuredly  come  to  grief  did 
he  attempt  to  gallop  over  it,  therefore  he  fell  back  upon  his 
original  plan. 

Taking  his  feet  from  the  stirrups  and  letting  go  the  reins  he 
quietly  lifted  himself  back  out  of  the  saddle,  and  then  holding 
on  by  it  let  himself  slip  off  noiselessly  over  the  crupper.  As 
he  did  so  he  stooped  low  on  the  ground.  The  troopers  behind 
were  riding  two  and  two,  with  an  interval  of  some  feet  be- 
tween them.  They  passed  along  on  either  side  of  him,  but 
the  horses  of  the  two  last  troopers,  who  were  riding  closer  to- 
gether than  the  others,  swerved  suddenly,  nearly  unseating  their 
riders,  and  causing  them  to  burst  into  angry  exclamations. 

"What  can  the  brutes  have  shied  at?"  one  asked  the 
other. 

"It  might  be  anything,"  was  the  reply.  "Lots  of  carts 
have  been  passing  down  the  road,  and  I  suppose  something 
has  dropped  off  one  of  them." 

As  soon  as  they  had  passed,  Percy  left  the  road.  He  found 
that  the  ground  on  either  side  was  covered  with  low  scrub 
bushes.  Among  these  he  made  his  way  cautiously,  and  had 
gone  but  fifty  yards  when  he  heard  a  sudden  shout,  followed 
by  a  string  of  furious  exclamations,  and  a  minute  later  the 
troopers  came  galloping  back  along  the  road.  He  stooped 
among  the  bushes  as  they  passed,  although  confident  that  he 
could  not  be  seen.  He  had  almost  expected  they  would  rein 
in  their  horses  as  they  came  to  the  point  where  he  had  left  the 
road,  and  indeed  they  would  certainly  have  done  so  if  the 
troopers  had  told  the  officer  of  the  sudden  start  their  horses 
had  given  them.  As  they  rode  on  without  a  check  he  con- 


318  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

eluded  that  the  men  had  said  nothing  of  the  incident,  thinking 
that  if  they  did  so  they  would  certainly  incur  blame,  and 
probably  severe  punishment,  for  not  ascertaining  what  it  was 
that  the  animals  had  shied  at. 

As  soon  as  they  had  passed  he  returned  to  the  road,  for 
although  he  could  have  kept  the  general  direction  by  means 
of  the  stars,  he  might  have  got  far  away  from  the  direct  track, 
and,  moreover,  might  in  the  dark  have  come  upon  broken 
ground  and  fallen  down  some  hole  or  nullah,  and  this  possi- 
bility would  necessitate  very  slow  and  careful  walking.  He 
therefore  kept  along  the  road,  but  was  so  frequently  obliged 
to  leave  it,  owing  to  the  number  of  carts,  horsemen,  and 
peasants  all  flying  before  the  expected  advance  of  the  British, 
that  he  made  but  slow  progress.  This,  however,  did  not 
trouble  him.  The  Sikh  army  had  fallen  back,  and  the  British 
cavalry  would  soon  be  scouring  the  country.  His  principal 
reason  for  wishing  to  be  back  before  the  evening  was  his 
arrangement  with  his  two  men.  It  was,  of  course,  uncertain 
that  they  would,  any  more  than  himself,  return  to  the  tent 
that  night.  Having  been  with  the  cavalry  during  the  battle 
they  would  know  nothing  of  what  had  taken  place  in  the  camp 
they  had  left,  and  could  not  have  been  certain  that  he  and 
his  guard  had  not  started  for  the  rear  early  in  the  day,  in 
which  case  he  would  not  have  attempted  to  escape.  How- 
ever, if  they  reached  the  tent  before  morning  they  would  be 
sure  to  wait  unless  they  saw  the  British  troops  crossing  the 
river,  in  which  case  they  would  probably  make  off,  as  they 
might  be  cut  down  before  they  could  make  it  understood  that 
they  were  the  servants  of  an  English  officer. 

As  soon,  therefore,  as  the  first  dawn  of  light  appeared  he 
moved  farther  away  from  the  road  and  entered  a  patch  of  low 
trees  and  brushwood,  and  there  sat  watching  the  road.  From 
time  to  time  bullock-carts  and  pack-animals  came  along, 
generally  in  parti-es  under  the  escort  of  small  bodies  of  sowars, 
who  were  evidently  urging  them  to  push  forward  with  all 


REJOINING  319 

haste.  Sometimes  the  bullock-carts  were  provided  with  cur- 
tains, and  no  doubt  contained  the  ladies  of  the  zenana  of 
some  zemindar  of  the  district,  who  with  his  retainers  was  with 
the  army.  The  spot  where  Percy  was  hidden  was  at  the  very 
edge  of  the  cultivated  ground,  and  beyond  wide  fields  stretched 
away  as  far  as  he  could  see.  Here  and  there  peasants  were 
at  work  as  usual,  heeding  very  little  the  events  passing  round 
them,  and  confident  they  would  suffer  no  molestation  at  the 
hands  of  the  British,  and  that  any  change  would  be  likely  to 
benefit  rather  than  to  harm  them. 

As  the  sun  gained  power  Percy  began  to  feel  the  torture  of 
thirst,  but  he  well  knew  that  there  was  no  hope  of  obtaining 
water,  as  he  could  not  quit  his  place  of  concealment  until 
night  again  fell,  for  his  dress  would  betray  him  even  at  a 
considerable  distance.  He  had  intended  to  watch  until  he 
saw  English  troops  coming  along,  but  he  had  been  walking 
all  night,  and  as  the  heat  increased  found  it  impossible  to 
keep  his  eyes  open.  Besides,  as  he  told  himself,  there  was 
no  certainty  whatever  that  the  British  cavalry  would  come 
along  that  day.  After  having  allowed  themselves  to  be  checked 
for  a  day  and  a  half  by  deserted  earthworks  there  might  be 
still  farther  delay,  and  even  after  crossing  a  day  might  elapse 
before  any  farther  advance  was  made.  He  was  turning  this 
over  in  his  mind  when  his  thoughts  gradually  became  con- 
fused, and  he  was  soon  sound  asleep. 

The  sun  was  setting  when  he  awoke.  On  looking  round  he 
saw  that  the  road  was  entirely  deserted,  and  determined  there- 
fore to  push  forward  through  the  fields  at  once  in  hope  of  dis- 
covering water,  for  he  woke  with  a  raging  thirst.  He  had 
walked  for  half  an  hour  when  he  saw  a  cloud  of  dust  on  the 
road,  and  at  once  leapt  down  into  a  small  nullah,  and  there, 
concealed  from  sight,  ran  towards  the  road.  When  he  heard 
the  tramping  of  horses  and  the  rumbling  of  wheels  he  took  off 
his  white  helmet  and  raised  his  head  sufficiently  high  to  look 
through  a  tuft  of  grass  at  the  edge  of  the  nullah.  A  moment 


320  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

later  he  was  standing  on  the  top  of  the  bank  waving  his  hat  to 
the  troops  passing  along  the  road  fifty  yards  away.  The 
glimpse  he  had  caught  of  the  white  faces  had  been  enough,  it 
was  a  battery  of  British  horse-artillery.  The  order  was  given 
to  halt,  and  an  officer  rode  up  to  meet  him. 

"Who  are  you,  sir?  " 

"  My  name  is  Groves.  I  am  in  the  civil  service,  and  was 
assistant  to  Major  Edwardes  before  Mooltan.  I  was  attached 
by  him  to  Sher  Singh's  force,  and  was  carried  off  by  it  when 
he  deserted.  I  effected  my  escape  last  night." 

The  officer  held  out  his  hand.  "I  am  very  glad  to  see 
you,"  he  said.  "Of  course,  we  heard  that  Sher  Singh  had 
carried  off  a  political  officer.  What  are  you  going  to  do  now? 
What  can  I  do  for  you?  My  orders  are  to  push  forward  at 
once.  The  gth  Lancers  are  ahead  of  us;  did  you  see  any  of 
them?" 

"The  first  thing  you  can  do  for  me  is  to  give  me  something 
to  drink,"  Percy  said,  "for  I  have  had  nothing  since  yester- 
day." 

The  officer  at  once  pulled  out  his  flask  and  handed  it  to 
him. 

"Thank  you  very  much,"  Percy  said,  after  taking  a  drink. 
"  No,  I  did  not  see  anything  of  the  cavalry.  I  was  walking 
all  last  night;  and  when  it  got  hot  this  morning  I  could  not 
keep  awake.  I  only  started  again  half  an  hour  ago.  They 
must  have  passed  before  that,  for  I  saw  nothing  of  them." 

"Are  there  any  of  the  rebels  along  on  this  road?  " 

Percy  shook  his  head.  "There  were  not  fifty  men  left  in 
the  camp  on  the  bank  of  the  Chenab  all  yesterday,"  he  said. 
"I  was  there,  and  was  expecting  you  to  cross  all  day." 

"Yes,  we  made  a  hideous  mess  of  it,"  the  officer  said  in  a 
tone  of  deep  disgust.  "  If  we  had  crossed  yesterday,  as  we 
ought  to  have  done,  we  should  have  come  on  the  rear  of  Sher 
Singh's  army  when  he  was  engaged  with  Thackwell,  and  have 
smashed  him  into  a  cocked  hat.  It  has  been  an  astounding 


REJOINING  321 

blunder.  There  is  no  chance  of  our  overtaking  any  body  of 
troops?" 

"  Not  the  slightest,  unless  this  road  runs  into  the  one  by 
which  the  Sikhs  are  retreating.  I  hear  they  are  retiring  on 
the  Jhelum,  and  will  make  a  stand  there." 

"Well,  as  you  have  no  horse,"  the  officer  said,  "the  best 
thing  you  can  do  is  to  get  up  on  one  of  our  limbers  and  go 
with  us.  Our  force  is  crossing  the  river,  and  will,  I  suppose, 
to-morrow  push  on  to  join  Thackwell,  somewhere  on  the  Julal- 
pore  road." 

As  Percy  learnt  that  he  was  still  twelve  miles  distant  from 
the  river  he  accepted  the  invitation,  climbed  up  on  to  a 
limber  between  two  artillerymen,  and  in  an  hour  reached 
Heylah,  where  the  artillery  and  guns  sent  forward  joined 
Thackwell' s  force,  which  had  halted  there.  Finding  that  the 
main  body  of  Lord  Cough's  force  had  halted  after  crossing 
the  river,  and  that  it  was  probable  no  farther  movement  would 
be  made  for  some  little  time,  Percy  purchased  from  a  trooper 
for  a  few  shillings  a  horse  he  had  picked  up  on  the  way,  hav- 
ing found  it  standing  by  the  side  of  its  dead  master,  who, 
although  terribly  wounded,  had  managed  to  keep  his  saddle  for 
some  miles.  Mounting  this  he  started  at  once  to  return  by 
the  road  by  which  he  had  arrived. 

He  had  met  no  one  he  knew  in  Sir  Joseph  Thackwell's 
camp,  and  considered  it  his  duty  to  report  himself  at  head- 
quarters. The  chief  reason  for  haste  was  his  anxiety  for  his 
two  men,  who  would,  he  knew,  if  they  had  managed  to  make 
their  escape,  rely  upon  his  returning  sooner  or  later  to  the 
place  where  he  had  appointed  to  meet  them.  It  was  ten 
o'clock  when  he  was  challenged  by  a  sentry  as  he  approached 
the  camp.  As  soon  as  he  was  found  to  be  a  British  officer  he 
was  permitted  to  proceed,  and  presently  found  his  way  to  the 
tent  of  the  principal  political  officer  with  Lord  Gough.  The 
latter  was  seated  talking  to  a  gentleman  when  Percy  was  shown 
in  by  an  orderly. 


322  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

"  I  have  come  to  report  myself  as  having  escaped  from  Sher 
Singh's  camp,"  he  said. 

There  was  a  sudden  exclamation,  and  one  of  the  gentlemen 
sprang  from  his  chair.  "Why,  Groves,  is  it  you?  I  should 
hardly  have  known  you  again.  Why,  it  is  more  than  two  years 
since  we  met." 

"  Some  months  more,  Mr.  Fullarton.  I  am  indeed  pleased 
to  meet  you  again." 

"Groves  is  an  old  friend  of  mine,"  Mr.  Fullarton  said, 
turning  to  the  other  gentleman.  "You  know  he  was  carried 
off  by  Sher  Singh  when  he  deserted  from  Whish's  camp  before 
Mooltan.  We  have  heard,  indeed,  from  messages  Sher  Singh 
has  from  time  to  time  sent  in  that  he  was  with  him  and  well, 
but  I  have  been  anxious  as  to  what  might  happen  if  we  defeated 
the  Sikhs.  I  am  proud  of  Groves,  for  he  is,  if  I  may  say  so, 
a  protege  of  mine,  and  it  was  partly  through  me  that  he  made 
his  first  start  in  the  service." 

"Entirely  through  you,  sir,"  Percy  said  warmly.  "I  owe 
my  position  entirely  to  you." 

"Not  entirely  by  a  long  way,  Groves.  I  accepted  your 
services  as  a  volunteer  when  we  were  badly  off  for  interpreters, 
but  it  was  solely  to  your  own  good  conduct  and  bravery  that 
you  owed  your  permanent  appointment.  Sir  Henry  Hardinge 
and  Lord  Gough  both  personally  recommended  him  in  very 
strong  terms  to  the  Court  of  Directors;"  he  added  to  the 
other  officer.  "  I  will  carry  him  off  to  my  tent.  I  expect  he 
has  nothing  but  what  he  stands  in." 

"One  moment,  Fullarton;  he  may  have  some  valuable 
information  to  give  us." 

"No;  I  am  sorry  I  have  nothing  to  tell  you  but  what  is 
known  already,  that  Sher  Singh  has  retreated  towards  the 
Jhelum.  I  was  not  with  him  in  the  fight  yesterday.  I  had 
been  left  under  a.  guard  here  in  camp,  and  I  only  went  away 
with  them  at  ten  o'clock  at  night,  and  managed  to  escape  from 
them  four  hours  afterwards.  I  hid  until  I  saw  a  battery  of  oui 


REJOINING  323 

horse-artillery  coming  along  this  afternoon,  and  went  with 
them  into  Heylah.  I  picked  up  a  Sikh  horse  there  and  started 
at  once  to  report  myself  to  you." 

"Then  I  will  not  detain  you,  Mr.  Groves.  You  will,  of 
course,  address  a  report  to  me  as  to  your  stay  in  Sher  Singh's 
camp  and  your  treatment  by  him.  I  shall  no  doubt  be  able  to 
find  you  plenty  to  do  in  the  course  of  a  day  or  two." 

"In  the  first  place,  Groves,"  Mr.  Fullarton  said  as  they 
reached  his  tent,  which  was  close  by,  "I  suppose  you  must 
want  something  to  eat?  " 

"I  shall  be  very  glad  of  something,  sir,  for  I  have  had 
nothing  to-day.  I  found  that  the  troops  at  Heylah  had  had 
nothing  since  they  marched  in  the  morning,  and  there  did  not 
seem  any  chance  of  their  getting  anything  to-night,  so  it  was 
of  no  use  my  thinking  of  getting  food  there." 

"That  accounts  for  your  starting  back  again  at  once,"  Mr. 
Fullarton  said  with  a  smile  as  he  touched  a  bell. 

Percy's  old  friend,  Ram  Singh,  entered.  "Get  some  food 
directly,  Ram  Singh.  This  is  Mr.  Groves,  your  old  pupil  on 
the  voyage." 

The  man  salaamed.  "  I  am  glad  to  see  you,  sahib.  You 
have  grown  since  then." 

"So  I  ought  to  have  done."  Percy  laughed.  "I  was  not 
fifteen  when  I  landed  here.  That  is  more  than  four  years  ago. 
I  owe  a  great  deal,  Ram  Singh,  to  the  lessons  I  had  from  you." 

"I  don't  think,  Mr.  Fullarton,"  he  went  on  when  the  man 
retired  to  get  some  food,  "  that  hunger  had  much  to  do  with 
my  coming  over  to-night.  I  was  very  anxious  about  my  two 
men,  they  are  the  same  two  I  had  with  me  when  I  came  to 
you  at  Loodiana.  They  have  been  with  me  ever  since,  and  I 
would  not  on  any  account  that  harm  should  come  to  them." 

He  then  related  the  instructions  he  had  given  them  as  to 
joining  him  if  they  made  their  escape. 

"It  is  quite  possible  that  they  may  be  in  the  camp  now," 
Mr.  Fullarton  said.  "  I  know  that  a  few  prisoners  were  taken 


324  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

by  the  gih  Lancers,  who  were  the  first  to  cross  the  ford. 
When  they  went  on  to  join  Thackwell  they  handed  over 
their  prisoners  to  one  of  the  other  corps.  We  have  all  been 
too  busy  to-day  to  think  about  them,  but  the  first  thing  in  the 
morning  I  will  go  with  you  and  see  if  your  men  are  among 
them.  It  is  too  late  to  do  it  to-night.  Now  tell  me  all  about 
your  sojourn  with  Sher  Singh,  and  how  you  managed  to 
escape  from  the  Sikhs." 

The  next  morning  early  Mr.  Fullarton  went  out  with  Percy, 
and  found  that  the  prisoners  taken  by  the  cavalry  who  had 
first  crossed  had  been  handed  over  to  the  charge  of  the  i4th 
Dragoons,  and  at  once  went  over  to  the  camp  of  that  regi- 
ment. Mr.  Fullarton  was  well  known  to  the  officer  in  com- 
mand of  the  corps,  who  on  learning  from  him  the  object  of 
his  visit  at  once  ordered  the  prisoners  to  be  paraded. 

"There  are  ten  of  them,  I  think,"  he  said.  "I  have  not 
questioned  them;  I  thought  some  of  you  political  gentlemen 
would  want  to  do  that,  and  all  I  had  to  do  was  to  take  care 
of  them." 

He  walked  across  with  them  to  the  guard-tent,  from  which 
the  prisoners  were  just  being  brought  out.  Percy  gave  an 
exclamation  of  satisfaction  as,  in  the  last  two  who  came  out, 
he  recognized  his  followers.  They  on  their  part  would  have 
run  forward,  but  the  habits  of  discipline  prevailed,  and  giving 
the  military  salute  they  fell  in  with  the  others. 

"Those  are  my  two  men,  sir,"  Percy  said  to  the  officer. 

"  I  suppose  it  is  all  right,  Fullarton,  for  me  to  let  them  go?  " 

"  Certainly,  I  can  answer  for  them  myself,  for  I  recognize 
them  as  having  been  with  Groves  when  he  first  joined,  and  I 
know  they  rode  behind  him  in  all  the  battles  on  the  Sutlej. 
They  are  thoroughly  good  and  trustworthy  fellows;  and  in- 
deed their  presence  here  shows  that  they  must  have  run  con- 
siderable risks  from  our  men  as  well  as  the  Sikhs,  in  obeying 
his  instructions  to  meet  him  here.  However,  I  will  give 
you  a  written  receipt  for  them,  and  that  will  take  all  respon- 


REJOINING  325 

sibility  off  your  shoulders.  The  others  scarcely  look  like 
fighting  men." 

"  No,  I  should  say  they  are  only  camp-followers,  who  lin- 
gered behind  in  the  hopes  of  picking  up  anything  the  Sikhs 
might  have  left  behind  them  when  they  went  off  so  suddenly." 

"  I  will  speak  about  them,  and  will  see  that  their  cases  are 
inquired  into  at  once." 

"  I  shall  be  very  much  obliged  if  you  would.  The  men 
have  got  plenty  of  work  without  looking  after  these  fellows; 
and  if  we  got  orders  to  go  forward  there  would  be  all  sorts  of 
bother  in  getting  rid  of  them,  and  in  handing  them  over  to 
someone  else." 

"I  will  see  about  it  at  once;  as  they  are  not  fighting  men 
there  can  be  no  object  in  keeping  them." 

"  Thank  you.  You  will  make  over  these  two  men  to  this 
gentleman,  sergeant;  they  are  released  from  custody." 

"We  have  their  horses  in  our  lines,  sir,  and  their  arms; 
they  were  handed  over  with  them;  are  they  to  take  them?  " 

"  Certainly.  They  are  Mr.  Groves'  servants,  and  fought  on 
our  side  at  Sobraon.  They  were  only  awaiting  their  master's 
return  when  they  were  captured." 

"Now,  Groves,  you  may  as  well  go  back  to  my  tent,"  Mr. 
Fullarton  said  as  they  walked  away,  followed  by  the  two  men 
leading  their  horses.  "  I  will  see  about  getting  a  tent  for  you 
later  on,  but  in  the  meantime  make  yourself  at  home  in  mine. 
I  shall  be  very  glad  to  have  you  with  me.  I  am  first  going  to 
get  authority  to  examine  the  other  prisoners,  and  release  them 
if  proved  harmless.  I  shall  be  with  you  at  breakfast-time." 

After  seeing  his  men  picket  their  horses  with  those  in  the 
political  officers'  lines  he  told  them  to  follow  him  into  the 
tent. 

"Now  sit  down  and  tell  me  all  about  your  escape,"  he  said. 

"There  is  not  much  to  tell,  sahib,"  Akram  Chunder,  who 
was  generally  the  spokesman,  replied.  "  We  were  ordered  to 
mount  and  ride  with  the  cavalry,  just  as  daylight  was  break- 


326  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

ing;  and  had  to  do  so  at  once.  On  the  way  we  agreed  that  if 
the  Sikhs  got  the  best  of  it  we  would  stay  with  them,  as  in  that 
case  they  would  doubtless  return  to  the  camp;  but  that  if 
they  were  beaten  we  would  get  away  if  we  could,  for  you 
would  certainly  be  moved.  If  you  were  moved  at  night  we 
knew  that  you  would,  as  agreed,  try  to  make  your  escape  and 
join  us  here.  If  you  were  moved  in  the  day,  and  had  no 
chance  of  escaping,  we  made  up  our  minds  to  follow  and  to 
get  you  away  if  possible,  for  we  considered  your  life  would 
be  in  danger,  and  that,  however  great  the  risk,  you  would  be 
willing  to  try  to  escape. 

"  When  we  got  near  your  people  we  were  with  the  body  of 
cavalry,  who  were  to  move  round  their  left  flank  and  fall 
upon  their  baggage.  As  soon  as  we  got  out  of  the  shelter  of 
some  sugar-cane  fields  a  battery  of  the  artillery  opened  at  us, 
and  over  went  men  and  horses.  It  was  very  uncomfortable, 
almost  as  bad  as  it  was  at  Ferozeshah,  for  although  it  was  but 
a  single  battery  every  shot  told.  They  were  firing  grape  and 
shrapnel,  and  many  of  the  shell  burst  just  in  front  of  us  and 
cut  big  gaps  in  the  line.  Then  a  regiment  of  dragoons  rode 
at  us,  and  though  they  were  but  a  handful  the  Sikhs  would 
not  wait  for  them,  but  bolted  back  into  the  canes.  All  this 
was  done  three  or  four  times,  and  Bhop  Lai  and  I  saw  that 
the  Sikh  game  was  up.  Their  cavalry  were  beaten  on  the 
other  flank  just  as  thorough  as  we  were,  and  the  infantry  never 
stirred  a  foot  beyond  their  shelter.  So  the  next  time  we  rode 
back  into  the  canes  we  separated  from  the  rest.  There  was 
no  difficulty  whatever  about  it.  The  different  troops  had  all 
got  mixed  up  together.  Half  the  party  we  were  with  had 
been  killed,  and  the  rest  had  enough  to  think  of  without 
bothering  about  us. 

"There  were  plenty  of  others  drawing  off,  some  wounded, 
some  who  did  not  want  any  more  of  it.  We  dismounted  as 
soon  as  we  separated  from  the  others,  so  that  our  heads 
should  not  show  above  the  canes,  led  our  horses  back  for  a 


REJOINING  327 

mile,  and  then  mounted  and  rode  till  we  got  to  a  nullah,  in 
which  we  hid  ourselves.  The  firing  went  on  for  some  time, 
then  it  stopped,  and  we  knew  that  the  Sikhs  had  had  enough 
of  it.  We  agreed  that  it  was  best  to  wait  where  we  were 
and  find  out  what  they  were  going  to  do.  If  they  marched 
back  to  the  camp  we  could  slip  into  the  ranks  again  and 
come  with  them;  if  they  did  not,  we  would  come  on  alone 
and  reconnoitre.  We  did  not  know  how  many  troops  had 
been  left  there,  so  when  it  got  dark  I  made  my  way  back 
again,  and  Bhop  Lai  took  charge  of  the  horses.  I  got  in 
among  the  infantry,  and  found  them  half  mad  with  rage  that 
they  had  not  been  ordered  to  advance.  They  had  suffered 
heavily,  for  the  canes  were  a  poor  protection  against  shot  and 
shell,  and  many  hundreds  had  been  killed  there.  I  learned 
that  the  orders  were  that  the  whole  force  were  to  march 
towards  the  Jhelum  at  midnight.  So  I  went  back  to  Bhop 
Lai,  and  we  rode  till  close  to  the  old  camp;  then  he  went  in 
on  foot  to  see  what  was  going  on. 

"  It  was  not  long  before  he  was  back  again,  saying  that  the 
place  was  entirely  deserted,  and  that  your  tent  had  been  left 
standing.  So  we  rode  straight  in  and  waited  there.  At  day- 
break I  went  to  the  river  and  saw  that  some  regiments  of  cav- 
alry were  preparing  to  cross.  I  hurried  back  to  the  tent,  and 
we  talked  it  over.  We  did  not  know  which  way  you  had 
gone,  and  might  miss  you  if  we  went  in  search  of  you.  We 
guessed  that  it  would  have  been  dark  before  you  set  out,  and 
as  we  had  your  positive  orders  to  wait,  we  made  up  our  minds 
to  do  so.  We  took  off  our  arms  and  laid  them  down  on  the 
ground,  and  sat  quietly  at  the  door  of  the  tent  till  a  white 
cavalry  regiment  rode  up.  We  did  not  feel  comfortable,  for 
we  were  not  sure  that  they  would  not  cut  us  down  at  once. 
But  as  our  horses  were  standing  there  and  we  could  have  rid- 
den away  had  we  chosen,  we  hoped  they  would  see  that 
we  were  not  enemies. 

"  None  of  the  officers  could  speak  Punjaubi,  so  after  trying 


328  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

to  question  us  we  were  handed  over  to  a  guard.  The  other 
men  you  saw  were  brought  in  later,  and  we  were  all  transferred 
together  to  another  dragoon  regiment,  put  in  a  tent,  and  made 
prisoners.  We  did  not  feel  uncomfortable  then,  for  we  knew 
that  your  people  do  not  kill  prisoners,  and  that  we  should 
presently  be  questioned  by  someone  who  knew  the  language, 
and  would  be  able  to  explain  how  we  came  there ;  but  we  were 
terribly  anxious  about  you,  and  when  we  saw  you  we  were 
ready  to  shout  with  joy.  Will  the  sahib  tell  us  how  he 
escaped?" 

"Just  as  we  had  planned,  Akram.  I  rode  with  them  for 
three  hours,  by  which  time  they  were  all  sleepy.  Then  I 
slipped  over  the  crupper  of  the  horse,  and  as  soon  as  they  had 
passed  on  hid  in  the  scrub.  Then  I  walked  back  till  morn- 
ing, and  lay  down  among  some  bushes  till,  late  in  the  afternoon, 
I  saw  a  battery  of  our  own  artillery  come  along.  They  took 
me  on  to  Heylah.  There  I  got  a  horse  and  rode  back  at  once, 
hoping  to  find  you  here.  It  was  ten  o'clock  when  I  arrived, 
too  late  to  make  inquiries  about  you  then;  but  I  heard  that 
ten  prisoners  had  been  taken,  and  came  over  with  Mr.  Fullar- 
ton  the  first  thing  this  morning  to  see  if  you  were  among 
them." 


CHAPTER  XIX 

CHILLIANWALLA 

'T'HERE  was  a  long  pause  after  the  battle  of  Sadoolapore. 
•*•  The  country  between  Heylah  and  the  Sikh  position,  fif- 
teen miles  distant,  was  covered  with  dense  jungle,  and  a  great 
number  of  native  wood-cutters  were  employed  in  cutting  roads 
through  it.  Skirmishes  often  took  place  between  the  Sikh 
regular  cavalry  and  our  patrols.  On  the  i8th  of  December 
Sher  Singh  moved  ten  thousand  men  to  Dingee.  As  this 
movement  threatened  the  Wuzeerabad  ford,  a  force  was 
despatched  there  to  bar  the  passage,  which  if  effected  would 
have  placed  Sher  Singh  between  the  British  force  and  Lahore. 
The  Sikhs  retired  again,  and  nothing  was  done  until  the  loth 
of  January,  when  the  British  force  concentrated  at  Lussoore. 
It  was  known  that  considerable  reinforcements  had  joined 
Sher  Singh,  among  these  being  two  troops  of  horse-artillery 
from  Peshawur.  These  batteries  had  been  disciplined  by  a 
British  officer,  and  had  been  presented  to  Chuttur  Singh  by 
the  Resident  at  Lahore,  to  enable  him  to  repel  the  attacks  of 
the  Afghans.  They  were  in  all  respects  exactly  similar  to 
those  used  in  the  Company's  service,  and  were  a  most  valuable 
addition  to  Sher  Singh's  strength. 

During  the  six  weeks  that  had  elapsed  since  the  battle, 
Percy  had  been  kept  busily  employed;  at  one  time  buying 
provisions,  at  another  questioning  villagers  as  to  routes  and 

329 


330  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

the  obstacles  to  be  encountered,  and  gathering  as  much 
information  as  possible  as  to  the  Sikh  position  at  Russool. 
The  descriptions  he  obtained  were  vague  in  the  extreme,  but 
all  united  in  describing  the  country  as  excessively  difficult, 
being  covered  with  jungle  and  abounding  in  deep  nullahs. 

"This  will  be  a  different  business  altogether,  Groves,  from 
our  former  attacks  on  the  Sikh  positions,"  said  Mr.  Fullarton. 

"  I  should  think  much  easier,  sir.  There  we  had  to  go  right 
across  the  open  with  fifty  or  sixty  cannon  and  ten  or  twelve 
thousand  infantry  all  blazing  away  at  us,  and  to  storm  a  place 
difficult  to  climb,  and  where  we  were  exposed  to  their  fire 
while  they  were  sheltered.  Fighting  in  the  jungle  we  have 
just  as  good  a  chance  as  they  have." 

"Except,  Groves,  that  they  will  know  every  foot  of  the 
ground,  and  we  shall  know  nothing  of  it,  which  makes  all  the 
difference  in  the  world." 

"It  does  make  a  difference,  no  doubt,  Mr.  Fullarton;  but 
you  see  we  turned  them  out  of  the  jungle  at  Moodkee  quickly 
enough." 

"That  is  true;  but  there  our  cavalry  got  round  behind 
them.  No  doubt  that  shook  their  resistance  very  much; 
nothing  alarms  undisciplined  troops  so  much  as  the  belief 
that  their  retreat  is  cut  off.  With  highly  disciplined  troops  it 
is  just  the  contrary;  when  they  know  they  must  either  conquer 
or  be  destroyed,  they  will  fight  more  obstinately  than  on  any 
other  occasion.  To-morrow  morning  we  move  forward  to 
Dingee,  and  I  expect  that  we  shall  fight  on  the  following  day, 
for  it  is  not  more  than  eight  miles  from  there." 

At  Dingee  a  Pathan  deserter  from  the  Sikh  camp  came  in, 
and  from  him  further  particulars  than  had  before  been  learned 
were  obtained. 

The  camp,  he  said,  was  round  the  village  of  Russool,  a  mile 
from  the  river.  In  front  of  it  was  a  ravine  some  hundreds  of 
feet  deep  and  almost  impassable.  Upon  the  ground  on  the 
other  side  of  this  ravine  the  Sikhs  had  erected  a  long  line  of 


CHILLIAXWALLA  331 

intrenchments,  to  reach  which  they  had  to  cross  the  ravine 
from  their  camp  on  a  narrow  wooden  footbridge  thrown  over 
it.  At  a  council  of  war  held  on  the  evening  of  the  arrival  of 
the  army  at  Dingee,  it  was  determined  that  an  attempt  should 
be  made  to  outflank  the  Sikh  intrenchments,  to  attack  Russool 
on  the  Sikh  left,  and  so  to  intercept  their  retreat  to  the  river. 
This  successful,  all  their  guns,  magazines,  and  stores  would 
be  captured,  although  doubtless  the  infantry  would  escape 
through  the  jungle. 

The  next  morning  the  troops  were  put  in  motion;  for  a 
time  they  marched  without  difficulty,  as  the  jungle  had  been 
cut  for  them,  but  after  that  their  movements  were  slow. 
Several  Pathan  deserters  came  in  as  they  advanced,  and  gave 
information  as  to  the  route  and  position.  After  a  march  of 
some  miles  a  halt  was  made.  The  troops  ate  some  of  the 
food  carried  in  their  haversacks,  and  an  allowance  of  grog  was 
served  out.  The  direction  of  the  line  of  march,  which  had 
hitherto  been  direct  upon  the  heights  of  Russool,  where  the 
Sikh  camp  was  plainly  visible,  was  now  changed,  and  sweeping 
round  they  reached  a  long  bare  hill  in  front  of  the  village  of 
Chillianwalla,  turning  out  some  Sikhs  who  were  stationed  in  a 
small  intrenchment  there.  Lord  Cough's  intention  was  to 
encamp  for  the  night  at  this  spot,  where  plenty  of  water  was 
obtainable,  so  that  the  troops  could  rest  and  prepare  for  the 
fight  in  the  morning,  when  the  whole  day  would  be  available 
for  the  operations. 

The  ground  was  marked  out  for  the  different  regiments  to 
occupy,  and  the  men  were  in  the  act  of  falling  out,  when  a 
large  body  of  men  were  seen  some  distance  in  the  front,  and 
several  guns  opened  fire.  The  Sikhs  had  left  their  intrench- 
ments, and  were  drawn  up  in  the  jungle.  Battery  after  battery 
opened  fire,  and  the  British  artillery  at  once  responded,  while 
the  troops  fell  into  their  ranks  again.  Lord  Gough  issued 
orders  for  the  battle  to  begin.  He  has  been  blamed  by  many 
for  so  doing,  but  it  is  difficult  to  see  how  it  could  have  been 


332  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

avoided.  The  Sikh  army  was  at  hand  in  full  force;  it  was 
out  of  the  question  to  retreat,  equally  out  of  the  question  to 
remain  passive  under  the  fire  of  the  enemy.  Inaction  or 
retreat  would  equally  have  been  interpreted  as  evidence  of 
fear,  and  would  have  vastly  encouraged  the  enemy.  The 
troops,  although  tired  by  their  march  through  the  jungle  under 
the  sun,  had  not  had  a  long  day's  work.  That  the  dispo- 
sitions for  battle  were  hurried,  incomplete,  and  faulty  is 
undeniable,  but  that  it  should  have  taken  place  was  under 
the  circumstances  inevitable. 

The  din  of  the  cannonade  was  prodigious,  echoed  as  it  was 
by  the  surrounding  hills.  The  Sikh  batteries  were  almost 
invisible,  and  the  British  artillerymen  directed  their  fire  solely 
at  the  flashes  and  smoke  rising  from  the  jungle.  The  posi- 
tion of  the  infantry  was  equally  hidden,  and  it  was  only  by 
the  sparkle  of  the  sun  on  bayonet  and  spearhead  that  any  in- 
dication of  its  line  was  obtainable.  But  having  determined 
upon  attacking,  it  was  necessary  that  some  plan  of  operation 
should  be  decided  upon,  some  specific  object  of  attack  as- 
signed to  each  of  the  commanding  officers  of  divisions  and 
brigades.  No  such  orders  were  given,  and  without  any  in- 
structions whatever  beyond  the  order  to  advance  and  capture 
the  enemy's  guns,  the  British  force,  numbering  some  eighteen 
thousand,  of  whom  but  a  small  proportion  were  white  troops — 
there  being  but  four  regiments  of  English  infantry  and  three 
of  cavalry — moved  forward  to  attack  a  force  estimated  at 
forty  thousand,  with  sixty-two  guns,  entirely  hidden  in  a 
jungle,  and  in  an  exceedingly  broken  and  difficult  ground. 

The  two  infantry  divisions  of  Major-general  Gilbert  and 
Brigadier-general  Colin  Campbell  advanced  boldly  to  the 
attack,  and  plunging  into  the  jungle  were  at  once  engaged  in  a 
hand-to-hand  struggle  with  the  Sikhs.  The  cavalry  on  the  right 
flank,  consisting  of  the  9th  Royal  Lancers,  the  i4th  Dragoons, 
and  two  regiments  of  native  cavalry,  were  ordered  to  ad- 
vance. They  were  commanded  by  Lieutenant-colonel  Pope, 


CHILLIANWALLA  333 

an  officer  of  the  native  cavalry.  He  was  unfortunately  in  such 
infirm  health  that  he  could  not  mount  his  horse  without  assist- 
ance, and  had  no  experience  whatever  of  the  command  of  a 
brigade  of  cavalry.  The  result  was  that  owing  partly  to  the 
difficulty  of  keeping  a  straight  line  in  the  jungle,  the  force 
not  only  overlapped  the  troops  of  horse-artillery  placed  be- 
tween them  and  Gilbert's  division,  but  got  in  front  of  Gil- 
bert's infantry.  The  guns  were  therefore  unable  to  afford 
them  any  assistance. 

Moving  forwards  at  a  walk,  the  cavalry  found  themselves 
opposed  both  by  infantry  and  cavalry.  Colonel  Pope  was 
wounded  severely  in  the  head.  The  troops,  being  without 
orders,  faced  about  in  different  directions  as  fresh  opponents 
appeared,  and  presently  came  to  a  halt.  The  Sikh  cavalry 
boldly  skirmished  up  to  them,  and  then,  under  the  belief  that 
the  order  had  been  given  to  retreat,  the  cavalry  turned  and 
galloped  back,  hotly  pursued  by  the  Sikhs.  In  their  retreat 
they  rode  right  over  the  batteries  of  horse-artillery,  disor- 
ganizing the  gunners  and  carrying  off  the  horses  in  their  rush; 
while  the  Sikhs,  of  whom  there  were  but  a  handful,  following 
hard  in  the  rear  of  the  flying  troopers,  cut  down  the  artillery 
men,  captured  six  guns,  and  continued  their  pursuit  until 
close  to  Lord  Gough  and  the  head-quarter  staff.  Then  a 
couple  of  guns,  judiciously  placed,  opened  upon  them,  and 
they  fell  back,  checked  by  the  appearance  of  a  couple  of 
squadrons  of  the  Lancers,  which  had  been  rallied  by  their 
officers. 

Had  the  cavalry,  when  they  first  came  in  contact  with  the 
enemy,  received  the  orders  to  charge,  the  result  would  proba- 
bly have  been  altogether  different.  Indeed  the  colonel  of 
one  of  the  cavalry  regiments  requested  permission  from  Pope 
to  charge,  but  it  was  refused.  The  men  who  fled  thus  pre- 
cipitately had  shown  an  almost  reckless  valour  at  Ramnuggur, 
and  would,  under  other  circumstances,  have  distinguished 
themselves  equally  here;  but  cavalry  at  a  walk  are  the  most 


334  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

defenceless  of  troops,  and  broken  up  as  they  were  by  the 
jungle,  unable  to  see  what  was  going  on  on  either  side, 
exposed  to  a  fire  from  hiden  foes,  and  feeling  that  they  were 
badly  handled,  it  is  not  surprising  that  when  they  came  to  a 
halt  they  were  liable  to  turn  and  go  about  with  alacrity  at  the 
first  sound  of  retreating  hoofs  at  any  portion  of  the  line. 

While  this  was  happening  a  battery  of  horse-artillery,  with 
some  squadrons  of  cavalry  from  three  of  the  regiments  en- 
gaged, had  most  gallantly  repulsed  the  attack  of  a  large  body 
of  the  enemy's  horse  on  our  extreme  left.  Godby's  brigade 
of  infantry,  which  had  been  deprived  of  a  chance  of  taking 
part  in  the  battle  of  Sadoolapore,  were  the  first  of  the  infantry 
to  come  in  contact  with  the  enemy.  Its  advance  was  assisted 
by  a  well-directed  fire  of  a  horse-artillery  battery  which  pre- 
pared the  way.  It  plunged  into  the  jungle  with  a  cheer,  and 
dashing  forward  through  every  obstacle  and  driving  its  defend- 
ers before  it,  came  upon  an  open  space,  the  opposite  side 
of  which  was  thickly  lined  by  the  enemy.  Our  troops  dashed 
across  this  under  a  tremendous  fire  of  musket  and  artillery, 
fired  a  volley,  and  hurled  themselves  upon  the  Sikhs,  who  broke 
and  fled.  Pursuit  was  impossible;  the  jungle  was  so  thick 
that  none  could  see  ten  yards  ahead.  Orders  were  given  to 
collect  the  wounded — an  imperative  duty,  for  the  Sikhs  mur- 
dered every  man  left  behind. 

Suddenly,  as  they  were  engaged  in  the  work,  a  tremendous 
fire  opened  upon  them  from  the  rear.  A  large  body  of  Sikhs 
had  worked  their  way  through  the  jungle  and  cut  them  off, 
while  a  strong  body  of  their  cavalry  issued  into  the  open  space 
and  charged  down  upon  them.  As  quick  as  thought  the 
horse-artillery  swept  their  guns  round,  loaded  with  grape,  and 
poured  in  their  fire,  creating  terrible  havoc  among  the  Sikh 
horse,  and  sending  them  flying  back  into  the  jungle.  The 
infantry  faced  about  and  retired  steadily,  but  were  pressed 
by  a  crowd  of  the  enemy.  Then  General  Gilbert,  who  was 
with  the  brigade,  gave  the  word,  and  the  second  battalion  of 


CHILLIANWALLA  335 

the  Bengal  Europeans  turned  and  went  at  them  with  a  cheer. 
The  Sikhs  fought  desperately  each  for  himself,  but  they  were 
swept  backward  and  bayoneted  in  great  numbers.  Three  of 
their  guns  were  taken  and  spiked,  and  another  captured  by 
one  of  the  native  regiments  of  the  brigade. 

The  left  brigade  of  Gilbert's  division  was  even  more 
severely  treated.  The  fighting  was  desperate;  the  zgth  cap- 
tured and  spiked  several  guns  in. the  Sikh  intrenchment,  but 
could  carry  off  only  five  of  them  for  want  of  horses.  As  it 
still  pushed  forward  the  brigade  was  swept  with  grape  and 
musketry.  The  5  6th  Native  Infantry  suffered  terribly,  losing 
its  colonel,  seven  other  officers,  and  three  hundred  and 
twenty-two  men  killed  and  wounded.  The  3oth  Native  Infan- 
try suffered  as  heavily,  losing  eleven  officers  and  two  hundred 
and  eighty-five  men  killed  and  wounded.  Both  the  native 
regiments  lost  their  colours.  The  brigade  was  at  length 
unable  to  withstand  the  attack  directed  against  it,  and  fell 
back. 

Pennycuick's  brigade  of  Colin  Campbell's  division  were  as 
roughly  handled;  they  had,  through  some  blunder  or  other, 
advanced  unsupported  by  artillery,  and  orders  were  given  by 
their  commander  that  they  were  not  to  fire  but  to  charge  the 
enemy's  guns.  The  24th,  the  European  regiment  of  the  bri- 
gade, the  strongest  battalion  of  the  force,  advanced  in  mag- 
nificent order  under  a  terrific  fire  of  musketry  and  artillery, 
drove  all  opposition  before  them,  and  captured  the  guns  op- 
posed to  them.  They  had  commenced  spiking  them,  when 
some  of  the  Bunnoo  regiments,  lying  concealed  in  the  brush- 
wood on  rising  ground  behind  the  guns,  opened  a  tremendous 
fire  of  musketry.  The  troops  were  thrown  into  some  confu- 
sion by  this  sudden  attack,  and  fell  back,  and  as  they  did  so 
they  were  literally  mown  down  by  the  enemy's  fire.  General 
Pennycuick  fell  dead;  his  son,  a  young  ensign,  stood  across 
his  father's  body  and  defended  it  until  he  fell  dead  beside  it. 
Colonel  Brooks  was  also  killed.  Eleven  other  officers  fell, 


Oob  THROUGH    THE    SIKH    WAR 

and  ten  were  wounded  either  among  the  guns  or  in  the  retreat 
that  followed.  The  Sikh  cavalry  pressed  hard  on  the  retir- 
ing soldiers,  while  their  musketry  and  artillery  swept  their 
ranks,  and  upwards  of  five  hundred  men  were  killed  and 
wounded.  The  regiment  was  in  fact  almost  annihilated. 
The  position  this  brigade  attacked  was  afterwards  found  to 
have  been  the  strongest  along  the  Sikh  line.  The  two  native 
regiments  of  the  brigade  had  advanced  in  line  with  the  24th, 
but  suffered  far  less  severely  in  the  retreat,  the  efforts  of  the 
Sikhs  being  concentrated  against  the  white  regiment. 

The  other  brigade  of  the  division,  at  whose  head  Colin 
Campbell  had  placed  himself,  was  more  fortunate.  The  6ist 
Foot  repulsed  several  desperate  attacks,  and  pouring  in  heavy 
volleys  swept  the  Sikhs  before  it.  Wheeling  round  it  fought 
its  way  along,  and  retook  the  guns  from  which  the  24th  had 
been  driven.  The  capture  of  the  guns  was,  however,  but  of 
little  avail,  for  as  soon  as  they  were  abandoned  the  Sikhs  man- 
aged to  draw  the  spikes,  and  in  a  few  minutes  they  were  again 
in  action.  Two  native  regiments  fought  worthily  by  the  side 
of  the  6 1  st. 

The  cavalry  on  the  extreme  left,  under  General  Thackwell, 
did  good  work  by  checking  a  very  large  body  of  Sikh  horse- 
men, a  squadron  of  the  3d  Dragoons  charging  and  riding 
right  through  them;  then  gathering  again  with  a  desperate 
effort  they  cut  their  way  back  to  their  friends,  two  officers  and 
thirty-six  men  having  been  killed  or  wounded  in  this  brilliant 
charge. 

Night  was  now  approaching.  A  portion  of  the  jungle  had 
been  for  the  moment  cleared,  but  beyond  this  the  Sikhs  still 
swarmed,  and  during  the  battle  large  bodies  had  worked  round 
and  had  only  been  prevented  by  the  fire  of  the  guns  from 
falling  on  the  rear.  Nothing  more  could  be  done;  some  of 
the  officers  advised  that  the  force  should  fall  back  to  the 
village  of  Chillianwalla,  in  order  to  obtain  water  and  to  afford 
protection  to  the  baggage.  Lord  Gough  at  first  refused  to  do 


CHILLIANWALLA  337 

so,  on  the  ground  that  any  wounded  left  behind  would  be 
massacred.  The  troops,  especially  the  Sepoys,  were,  however, 
so  distressed  by  thirst,  that  the  wounded  were  as  far  as  possi- 
ble collected,  and  the  force  concentrated  round  Chillianwalla. 

Had  the  enemy  attacked  at  night  the  consequence  would 
have  been  terrible,  for  the  regiments  were  broken  up  and 
separated,  and  the  confusion  was  absolute;  but  at  eight  o'clock 
the  rain  came  down  in  torrents,  and  this  and  the  fact  that 
their  own  loss  had  been  severe,  especially  among  the  gunners, 
checked  the  ardour  of  the  Sikhs,  and  probably  saved  the  British 
force.  In  the  morning  the  enemy  were  seen  encamped  on  an 
eminence  three  miles  distant.  The  cavalry  scoured  the  field 
of  battle  to  collect  any  wounded  that  had  been  left,  and  bring 
in  the  captured  guns.  Twelve  small  cannon,  however,  were 
the  only  trophies  of  the  fight.  The  rolls  were  called,  and  the 
loss  ascertained:  it  consisted  of  eighty-nine  officers,  two 
thousand  three  hundred  and  fifty-seven  men  killed  and 
wounded — an  enormous  loss  in  proportion  to  the  number  of 
men  engaged.  Six  guns  were  lost,  together  with  the  ammuni- 
tion that  had  accompanied  several  of  the  corps  into  the  fight. 

It  was  so  far  a  drawn  battle  that  the  armies  at  night  occu- 
pied the  same  positions  they  had  held  at  the  commencement 
of  the  battle,  but  the  advantage  was  all  with  the  Sikhs,  for  the 
fighting  strength  of  the  four  English  regiments  that  had  formed 
the  backbone  of  the  force  was  lessened  by  half;  while  the 
Sikhs  had  proved  to  their  delight  that  British  troops  were  not 
always  invincible,  and  that  occasionally  they  were  even  subject 
to  panic.  The  result  was  that  their  confidence  was  greatly 
increased,  and  their  losses  were  far  more  than  balanced  by  the 
great  number  of  recruits  who,  at  the  news  of  the  repulse  of 
the  British  attack,  poured  into  Sher  Singh's  camp. 

The  British  army  remained  stationary  at  Chillianwalla  from 
the  1 3th  of  January  to  February.  Large  numbers  of  the  Sikhs 
at  various  times  penetrated  to  Dingee,  and  cut  the  lines  of 
communication  through  that  place;  there  was  indeed  another 


338  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

line  open  through  Hayleh,  where  the  force  that  had  been  en- 
gaged at  Sadoolapore  had  remained  since  that  battle,  to  pre- 
vent the  Sikhs  from  advancing  towards  Lahore.  The  regiments 
"  that  had  been  left  behind  at  Ramnuggur  rejoined  the  army, 
their  place  being  taken  by  the  53d  Regiment  from  Lahore. 

General  Whish's  force  which  had  captured  Mooltan  was  now 
on  its  way  to  join  that  of  Lord  Gough.  The  siege  of  Mooltan 
had  been  renewed  after  the  departure  of  Sher  Singh's  army, 
and  reinforcements  having  reached  General  Whish,  it  was 
pushed  on  with  great  vigour.  Two  breaches  were  effected  in 
the  walls  of  the  fort,  and  the  great  mosque,  which  was  used  as 
a  magazine  by  the  rebels,  was  pierced  by  a  shell,  which  caused 
a  terrific  explosion,  entirely  destroying  the  building,  leaving  a 
great  chasm  where  it  had  stood,  levelling  the  Sikh  works  near 
it,  and  killing  five  hundred  men.  Soon  after  this  misfortune, 
Moolraj,  finding  further  resistance  impossible,  came  out  and 
surrendered  unconditionally,  just  as  the  British  columns  were 
formed  up  in  readiness  to  storm  the  breaches.  He  was  taken 
to  Calcutta  and  there  tried;  he  was  found  guilty,  but  it  being 
considered  that  he  had  acted  under  a  pressure  from  his  troops 
that  he  was  unable  to  resist,  he  was  sentenced  only  to 
imprisonment  for  life. 

At  the  battle  of  Chillianwalla  Percy  Groves  had  been 
severely  wounded.  He  was  sitting  on  his  horse  with  Mr. 
Fullarton  and  two  or  three  other  political  officers  at  a  distance 
of  a  hundred  yards  from  the  head-quarters  staff,  when  Pope's 
cavalry  issued  in  headlong  flight  from  the  jungle.  An  excla- 
mation of  dismay  burst  from  each  member  of  the  little  party. 

"It  is  a  regular  stampede,"  Mr.  Fullarton  exclaimed; 
"  there  come  the  Sikhs  after  them !  Why,  they  are  compara- 
tively a  handful !  What  on  earth  possesses  the  men  ?  Why, 
they  will  be  over  the  guns !  Did  you  ever  see  such  madness  ?  " 

On  came  the  fugitives. 

"To  the  right  there!"  Mr.  Fullarton  shouted,  "or  these 
madmen  will  ride  us  down." 


PERCY   TAKES   PART   IN   THE   BATTLE   OF   CHILLIANWALLA. 


CHILLIANWALLA  339 

They  had  but  just  got  clear  of  the  front  when  the  cavalry 
swept  past;  before  they  could  go  farther  half  a  dozen  Sikh 
horsemen  rode  at  them.  The  civilians  all  carried  pistols,  and 
these  they  used  with  some  effect.  Two  of  the  Sikhs  fell,  the 
rest  rushed  on  them.  Percy  had  no  sword,  and  thought  that 
his  end  had  come;  when  there  was  a  shout,  and  his  two 
followers  rode  past  him,  and  fiercely  fell  upon  the  Sikhs. 

Percy  turned  round  in  time  to  see  two  of  the  civilians  cut 
down  by  the  tulwars  of  the  other  Sikhs,  while  Mr.  Fullarton 
tried  with  his  pistol  to  ward  off  a  blow  aimed  at  him.  The 
force  of  the  blow  struck  it  down  and  the  sword  fell  on  his 
shoulder.  Before  the  Sikh  had  time  to  strike  again  he  was 
shot  by  Bhop  Lai,  and  the  latter  and  his  comrade  then  attacked 
the  remaining  two  Sikhs  furiously.  Akram  Chunder  ran  one 
through  with  his  sword.  Bhop  Lai  seriously  wounded  the 
other,  who  wheeled  his  horse  round  and  fled  at  full  speed. 

A  moment  later  there  was  a  thunder  of  hoofs,  and  the 
Lancers  who  had  rallied,  came  dashing  down.  Percy,  furi- 
ous at  seeing  Mr.  Fullarton  fall,  exclaimed,  "  Give  me  one  of 
those  tulwars,  Bhop  Lai."  The  man  sprang  from  his  horse 
and  handed  him  the  one  that  had  fallen  from  the  hand  of  the 
Sikh  he  had  shot. 

As  the  Lancers  came  along  Percy  with  his  two  companions 
fell  in  behind  them.  They  rode  over  many  of  the  Sikh  horse- 
men; the  rest  fled,  and  were  hotly  pursued  back  to  the  jungle, 
many  of  them  being  cut  down.  The  impetus  of  the  charge 
took  the  Lancers  well  into  the  wood.  A  blaze  of  musketry 
flashed  out  in  front  of  them;  a  fresh  troop  of  horsemen 
charged  down,  and  a  moment  later  they  were  engaged  in  a 
hand-to-hand  contest.  A  tall  Sikh  rode  at  Percy,  and  they  at 
once  engaged  in  single  combat.  Percy's  steady  training  at 
the  fortress  with  sword  and  tulwar  was  useful  to  him  now. 
The  Sikh's  shield  gave  him  an  advantage,  but  this  was  counter- 
balanced by  Percy's  being  accustomed  to  thrust  as  well  as 
strike.  For  some  time  the  contest  was  doubtful,  and  then, 


340  THROUGH   THE    SIKH   WAR 

after  feinting  at  the  Sikh's  head  to  make  him  throw  up  his 
shield,  Percy  ran  him  through  the  body.  He  heard  a  warning 
shout  from  Bhop  Lai  as  he  did  so,  and  the  next  moment 
another  Sikh  rode  at  him,  knocking  his  horse  off  its  legs,  while 
at  the  same  moment  a  crashing  blow  fell  on  his  helmet.  After 
that  he  remembered  nothing. 

When  he  opened  his  eyes  it  was  dark.  Presently  he  could 
hear  talking  all  round  him;  he  listened,  and  heard  that  the 
language  was  Punjaubi.  He  wondered  to  himself  how  he  had 
got  there,  then  he  recalled  a  fight  and  gradually  recollected 
his  horse  falling.  "I  must  be  wounded,"  he  said  to  himself. 
"Yes,  my  head  throbs  fearfully;  but  how  is  it  that  I  am  here? 
the  Sikhs  always  kill  the  wounded." 

He  made  an  effort  to  raise  himself  on  one  elbow,  when  he 
felt  a  hand  laid  on  him,  and  a  voice  which  he  recognized  as 
that  of  Akram  Chunder  whispered  in  his  ear : 

"Do  not  stir,  sahib;  thanks  to  the  Great  One  that  you  have 
recovered.  We  were  sure  that  you  were  not  dead;  the  blow 
was  a  heavy  one,  but  as  you  were  falling  when  he  struck,  the 
tulwar  did  not  catch  you  quite  fairly,  and  the  helmet  helped 
to  turn  it,  so  that,  instead  of  cleaving  your  skull,  it  has  but 
shaved  off  a  portion  of  your  scalp  and  half  your  ear." 

"But  how  is  it  you  are  here  with  me?  " 

"We  were  both  fighting,  sahib,  and  knew  that  you  could 
hold  your  own  against  the  Sikh  you  were  engaged  with.  Sud- 
denly, just  as  from  the  corner  of  my  eye  I  saw  that  you  had 
disposed  of  him,  another  rode  at  you.  I  gave  a  shout,  and 
cut  down  the  man  I  was  fighting  with;  but  before  I  could  turn 
my  horse  you  were  down.  I  shot  the  Sikh,  and  then  I  and 
Bhop  Lai,  who  had  just  rid  himself  of  his  man,  leapt  off  our 
horses,  intending  to  lift  you  on  to  one  of  them;  but  at  that 
moment  the  Lancers  began  to  fall  back,  and  we  saw  that  it  was 
too  late,  so  each  seizing  you  under  one  arm,  we  sprang  with 
you  into  a  bush. 

"  Then,  while  Bhop  Lai  stayed  with  you,  I  ran  out  again, 


CHILLIANWALLA  341 

caught  up  the  mantle  of  a  Sikh  who  had  fallen  within  a  yard 
of  the  bush,  and  sprang  in  again.  We  wrapped  you  in  the 
mantle,  then  crawled  on,  dragging  you  with  us  into  a  very 
thick  patch  of  bush,  where  you  are  lying  now.  A  moment 
later  half  a  dozen  Sikh  infantry,  pushing  their  way  through  the 
bushes,  came  close.  One  of  them  caught  sight  of  us,  and 
cried,  'What  are  you  doing  here,  comrades?'  'My  brother 
is  sorely  wounded,'  I  said,  'and  we  have  stopped  to  close  his 
eyes  before  we  go  on  to  have  another  fight  with  the  Fering- 
hees. '  'You  must  make  haste,  then,'  he  said,  'or  there  will 
be  none  of  them  left  to  fight  with. ' 

"  We  heard  large  numbers  of  them  pass  along  a  short  dis- 
tance off,  then  volley  after  volley  of  grape  came  crashing 
through  the  jungle,  and  they  fell  back  again.  'I  will  mix 
with  them,'  Bhop  Lai  said;  'you  stop  with  our  sahib.  One  is 
less  likely  to  be  seen  than  two.  Your  story  is  good  enough  to 
account  for  one  if  they  catch  sight  of  you,  but  it  is  not  good 
enough  for  two  of  us. ' 

"  For  two  hours  the  battle  went  on,  but  not  near  us  again. 
The  banging  of  cannons  and  muskets  was  as  bad  as  at  Feroze- 
shah.  Sometimes  I  thought  one  side  was  winning,  sometimes 
the  other.  Sometimes  I  could  hear  Sikh  yells  of  triumph, 
sometimes  a  deep  roar  even  above  the  din  of  the  musketry, 
and  knew  that  it  was  an  English  cheer,  for  I  had  heard  it 
before.  Occasionally  men  came  along,  having  strayed  from 
their  parties;  and  each  told  a  different  story.  Some  said  that 
many  of  their  cannons  had  been  captured  by  the  Feringhees; 
others  declared  that  the  Feringhees  were  almost  destroyed. 
Bhop  Lai  sat  down  only  ten  or  twelve  yards  away,  and  I  could 
hear  him  talking  to  them.  Presently  I  heard  him  ask  had 
anyone  any  water?  'I  have  a  wounded  comrade  somewhere 
not  far  off  in  the  jungle,  and  I  want  some  for  him.'  Some- 
body lent  him  a  water-gourd.  He  went  off  behind,  and  some 
minutes  later  worked  round  here  with  it.  He  would  not  come 
straight,  for  some  of  them  might  have  followed  him  into  the 


342  THROUGH   THE   SIKH  WAR 

bushes,  to  see  if  they  could  do  anything  for  his  comrade,  but 
this  was  not  likely,  for  there  are  scores  of  wounded  men  round 
here.  However,  we  tore  off  some  rags  and  wetted  them,  and 
laid  them  on  your  wound,  and  we  poured  a  little  of  it  into  my 
water-flask  to  sprinkle  your  face,  and  drop  between  your  lips 
from  time  to  time,  and  then  Bhop  Lai  went  back  again  with 
the  remainder." 

"But  how  has  the  battle  ended,  Akram?  " 

"  It  has  ended  just  as  it  began — the  white  troops  have  all 
gone  up  to  Chillianwalla  and  the  other  villages  there.  The 
Sikhs  hold  the  jungle.  They  captured  six  of  the  guns  our 
cavalry  rode  over,  and  they  have  lost  twelve,  but  all  small  ones. 
I  hear  that  almost  all  their  gunners  are  killed,  for  the  British 
took  several  of  the  batteries,  though  they  could  not  hold  them ; 
and  you  know,  sahib,  the  Sikhs  will  never  leave  their  guns, 
but  will  stand  by  them  till  they  are  cut  down.  The  men  about 
here  don't  know  what  is  going  to  be  done.  Some  say  that 
they  will  attack  to-morrow;  others  say  that  though  they  have 
shown  that  they  are  more  than  a  match  for  the  Feringhees,  it 
would  be  too  much  to  attack  them  in  their  own  positions, 
especially  as  they  have  not  enough  gunners  to  work  the  pieces." 

"Perhaps  we  shall  attack  in  the  morning,  Akram." 

"I  do  not  think  so,  sahib;  they  say  that  one  of  the  white 
regiments  had  scarcely  a  man  left,  and  that  the  others  have 
lost  half  their  strength.  The  general,  sahib,  is  a  great  man 
for  fighting,  but  he  must  see  that  until  he  gets  more  troops  he 
can  never  force  his  way  through  the  jungle  up  to  Russool." 

There  was  presently  a  sound  of  someone  forcing  his  way 
through  the  bushes,  then  a  voice  said,  "  I  bring  orders  that  all 
are  to  fall  back.  It  is  not  that  we  are  beaten,  as  everyone 
knows;  we  have  won  a  great  victory,  and  have  taught  the 
Feringhees  that  they  are  not  invincible,  but  food  and  water 
cannot  be  brought  down  here,  therefore  all  must  go  up  and  get 
food  and  drink  and  rest  for  the  night.  The  Feringhees  have 
had  enough,  and  will  not  attack  again  to-morrow  morning; 
but  if  they  do,  we  will  come  down  again  and  welcome  them." 


CHILLIANWALLA  343 

There  was  a  murmur  of  satisfaction,  for  the  Sikhs  had  taken 
up  their  position  some  hours  before  the  British  attacked  them, 
and  were  eager  for  food,  as  although  spirits  had  been  freely 
served  out,  the  supply  of  food  in  the  camp  was  small,  and 
many  had  eaten  nothing  that  day.  Bhop  Lai  moved  off  with 
the  others,  but  in  five  minutes  was  back  again.  As  in  the 
dark  he  was  unable  to  find  the  clump  of  bush  in  which  Percy 
was  hidden,  Akram  called  to  him  in  a  low  voice. 

"How  is  the  sahib?"  Bhop  Lai  asked,  as  he  pushed  his 
way  in. 

"I  am  better,"  Percy  answered.  "You  have  saved  my  life 
between  you.  Have  they  all  gone?  " 

"All  that  can  walk,  sahib;  there  are  numbers  of  wounded 
lying  about,  but  there  is  nothing  to  prevent  our  starting  off 
now." 

"  I  don't  think  that  I  can  walk  yet,"  Percy  said.  "  Perhaps 
in  a  little  time  I  may  be  able  to  do  so." 

"I  am  afraid  not,  sahib;  but  that  makes  no  difference;  we 
can  carry  you  easily.  Akram,  do  you  stoop  down  on  one  side, 
and  I  will  do  so  on  the  other.  Now,  sahib,  put  your  arms 
round  our  necks;  we  will  clasp  our  hands  under  you,  and  you 
can  sit  then  as  in  a  chair." 

Percy  himself  was  able  to  give  but  little  assistance,  but  he 
felt  himself  lifted  up  and  held  firmly;  then  slowly  and  steadily 
the  two  men  carried  him  through  the  jungle.  Once  or  twice 
they  were  asked  by  a  figure  on  the  ground  who  they  were,  but 
the  answer  in  their  own  language,  that  they  were  looking  for  a 
comrade  who  had  fallen,  sufficed,  as  it  was  too  dark  under  the 
trees  for  it  to  be  seen  that  they  were  already  carrying  a  burden. 

"It  was  well  that  they  didn't  know  we  had  you  with  us, 
sahib.  Had  they  done  so,  we  should  like  enough  have  had  a 
musket-ball  after  us.  A  wounded  Sikh  is  as  dangerous  as  one 
standing  on  his  feet." 

But  Percy  did  not  reply;  he  only  heard  the  words  as  if 
spoken  a  long  distance  off.  A  little  farther  and  he  was  con- 


344  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

scious  of  nothing.  His  bearers  carried  him  a  hundred  yards 
beyond  the  jungle,  and  then  laid  him  down  again,  sprinkled 
some  water  in  his  face,  and  poured  a  few  drops  between  his 
lips;  but  as  he  gave  no  sign  of  returning  consciousness,  Akram 
Chunder  said,  "We  had  better  take  him  on  again.  It  is  from 
loss  of  blood  he  has  fainted,  and  we  must  get  him  to  camp. 
First,  I  will  again  try  to  bandage  his  wound." 

He  unwound  several  yards  of  muslin  from  his  turban,  and 
bound  up  Percy's  head.  Then  they  lifted  him  and  went  for- 
ward, this  time  at  a  faster  pace  than  before,  for  there  was  now 
no  fear  of  giving  Percy  pain.  They  had  to  be  careful,  how- 
ever; the.  ground  they  were  crossing  was  that  over  which  the 
cavalry  had  retreated,  and  it  was  thickly  dotted  with  the  bodies 
of  the  fallen.  Once  past  this,  they  pressed  rapidly  up  the  slope 
to  Chillianwalla.  To  their  surprise  they  approached  unchal- 
lenged, for  they  had  been  afraid  that  their  reply  in  a  native 
tongue  would  have  brought  a  shot  from  a  sentry ;  but  such  was 
the  confusion,  and  so  exhausted  were  the  men,  that  while  some 
regiments  had  thrown  out  sentries,  others  had  not  done  so,  and 
they  were  fortunate  in  having  come  upon  an  unguarded  spot. 
A  little  farther  and  they  entered  the  village.  Numbers  of  men 
were  lying  asleep  in  the  streets.  Presently  an  officer  came  along. 

"What  have  you  there?  " 

"An  officer,  sahib,  wounded,"  Akram  Chunder,  who  had 
picked  up  a  few  words  of  English,  replied. 

"Where  have  you  got  him  from?  "  the  officer  asked  in  Hin- 
dustani. 

Akram  could  understand  the  question,  but  could  not  answer 
it  in  the  same  language,  and  answered  him  in  Punjaubi. 

"We  brought  him  out  from  the  jungle  over  there,  sahib." 

"I  don't  understand  you,"  the  officer  muttered;  and  then 
aloud  in  Hindustani,  "  Come  along  with  me  to  those  lights, 
that  is  one  of  the  hospitals." 

They  went  with  him  to  the  door  of  one  of  the  largest 
buildings  in  the  village,  and  entered.  The  floor  was  covered 


CHILLIAXWALLA  345 

with  prostrate  figures.  Four  or  five  surgeons  with  orderlies 
holding  torches  were  engaged  in  bandaging,  probing  for  bul- 
lets, or,  in  one  case,  in  amputating. 

"Doctor,"  the  officer  said,  "here  are  two  fellows  who  look 
like  Sikhs,  though  I  suppose  they  are  not;  they  have  got  a 
wounded  officer,  but  where  they  found  him  I  have  no  idea. 
Do  any  of  you  speak  Punjaubi?  They  may  be  able  to  tell  us 
what  those  fellows  over  there  are  doing." 

But  none  of  the  surgeons  spoke  the  language. 

"We  will  just  see  who  the  man  is  they  have  brought  in," 
the  officer,  who  was  a  colonel,  said;  "he  seems  dead  by  his 
attitude.  Put  him  down  there,  men." 

The  two  men  understood  his  gesture,  and  laid  Percy  on  the 
floor. 

"He  is  not  dead,  but  he  is  mighty  near  it,"  the  surgeon 
said,  as  he  felt  his  pulse.  "Ah,  this  is  what  it  is,  a  cut  from 
one  of  those  tulwars.  He  is  bleeding  to  death.  Give  me 
that  brandy  bottle,  orderly." 

He  poured  a  spoonful  or  two  between  Percy's  lips,  then 
laid  some  lint  over  the  wound,  and  firmly  bandaged  it. 

"  Give  him  another  spoonful,  orderly,  while  I  go  on  to  the 
next;  he  will  come  round  presently." 

"  Is  it  mortal,  doctor?  " 

"No,  it  is  a  very  nasty  wound,  but  I  don't  think  it  has  cut 
through  the  skull;  the  sword  must  have  been  turned  a  little 
I  will  examine  it  in  the  morning  when  I  get  breathing  time." 

"I  know  him  now,"  the  colonel  said;  "it  is  that  young 
civilian  who  came  in  the  day  we  crossed  the  Chenab.  Yes, 
these  are  the  two  native  servants  who  always  rode  behind  him. 
Come  along  with  me,  men;  I  must  take  you  to  someone  who 
talks  Punjaubi.  You  shall  come  back  to  your  master  after- 
wards; he  is  lucky  in  having  two  such  faithful  servants." 

The  men  did  not  fully  understand  him,  but  Akram  Chunder 
gathered  the  meaning,  and  with  a  look  at  their  master  they 
followed  the  officer  from  the  hospital. 


CHAPTER  XX 

GUJERAT 

THE  officer  kept  on  nearly  to  the  end  of  the  village,  and 
then  opened  a  door  and  went  in.  "Mansfield,  you  un- 
derstand Punjaubi.  These  two  fellows  are  the  servants  of 
that  young  civilian — Groves,  I  think,  is  his  name — the  man 
that  was  with  Edwardes,  you  know,  at  Mooltan,  and  was 
taken  prisoner  by  Sher  Singh,  and  escaped  after  the  battle  of 
Sadoolapore. " 

"Yes,  I  know  him.     What  of  him?  " 

"They  have  just  brought  him  in  with  his  head  laid  open 
badly  with  a  tulwar.  He  has  pretty  nearly  bled  to  death,  but 
the  surgeon  who  has  dressed  his  wounds  thinks  he  will  get 
over  it.  I  want  you  to  ask  these  fellows  where  they  have 
brought  him  from.  I  expect  he  is  one  of  the  party  who  were 
fallen  upon  by  the  Sikhs  who  came  on  after  our  cavalry.  I 
know  there  were  two  of  them  killed,  and  Fullarton  is  desper- 
ately wounded.  I  cannot  understand  how  it  was  our  fellows 
didn't  find  Groves  when  they  were  collecting  the  wounded." 

"Where  did  you  bring  your  master  in  from?  "  Major  Mans- 
field asked  in  Punjaubi. 

"We  have  brought  him  in  from  the  jungle  over  there, 
sahib,"  Akram  Chunder  replied. 

"From  the  jungle?"  Major  Mansfield  repeated. 

"He  joined  the  Lancers  who  came  up  and  drove  back  the 

346 


GUJERAT  347 

Sikh  horsemen;  he  went  on  with  them  into  the  jungle,  and  in 
the  fight  there  he  was  cut  down  by  a  Sikh  just  after  he  had 
run  another  through." 

"  The  dickens  he  was !  "  the  officer  exclaimed.  "  Then  how 
on  earth  was  it  that  he  wasn't  killed  when  the  Lancers  fell 
back  again?  They  have  never  spared  any  wounded  that  fell 
into  heir  hands." 

Akram  Chunder  related  how  he  and  his  comrade  had  dis- 
mounted and  concealed  his  master,  had  kept  him  in  the  midst 
of  the  Sikh  infantry  till  they  retired,  and  had  then  carried 
him  up  to  the  village. 

"You  are  fine  fellows,"  the  officer  said  warmly,  "noble  fel- 
lows; "  and  he  shook  them  both  by  the  hand,  to  the  astonish- 
ment of  the  colonel  who  had  brought  them  in,  and  of  the 
other  officers  who  crowded  the  little  cottage.  Turning  round 
Major  Mansfield  repeated  the  story  he  had  heard.  All  broke 
into  loud  exclamations  of  admiration. 

"Wait  a  moment,"  the  colonel  said,  "we  shall  have  time 
to  talk  about  that  afterwards.  The  important  point  is  to  find 
out  from  them  whether  they  know  what  the  Sikhs  are  doing 
to-night." 

The  question  was  then  put,  and  when  Akram  Chunder  re- 
peated the  order  he  had  heard  given,  that  the  Sikhs  were  all  to 
retire  to  Russool,  there  was  a  deep  and  general  feeling  of  relief. 

"That  is  the  best  news  I  have  heard  for  many  a  day,"  the 
colonel  exclaimed;  "for  if  they  had  fallen  upon  us  to-night, 
which  I  half  expected  they  would  do,  it  would  have  been  a 
frightful  business.  I  must  take  these  men  to  Lord  Gough  at 
once.  He  will  be  even  more  glad  than  I  am  to  hear  the 
news,  for  he  must  feel  the  responsibility  terribly.  You  might 
as  well  come  along,  Mansfield,  to  act  as  interpreter;  he  may 
have  no  one  with  him  just  at  present  who  speaks  the  lan- 
guage." 

The  story  was  told  to  the  commander-in-chief  and  Sir 
Henry  Lawrence,  who  was  now  his  chief  political  adviser. 


348  THROUGH  THE   SIKH  WAR 

"The  information  is  most  valuable  if  true,"  Sir  Henry 
Lawrence  said.  "  I  suppose  there  is  no  doubt  these  two  men 
are  Mr.  Groves'  servants;  because,  as  you  say,  he  was  brought 
in  insensible.  That  is  a  very  important  point,  for  they 
might  be  two  Sikhs  sent  in  with  this  story  to  put  us  off  our 
guard." 

"Major  Mansfield  says  that  he  recognizes  their  faces,  Sir 
Henry." 

"  I  would  not  say  that  I  absolutely  recognize  them,  but  they 
certainly  look  to  me  like  the  two  men  whom  I  have  seen 
riding  with  Mr.  Groves." 

"  Do  not  let  us  make  any  mistake  about  it.  The  matter  can 
be  easily  settled.  If  these  men  have  been  in  camp  for  a 
month  they  must  be  well  known." 

"I  will  find  one  of  Mr.  Fullarton's  men,  sir.  Groves  was 
living  in  his  tent,  so  any  of  the  servants  there  would  know 
them." 

While  the  major  was  away  Sir  Henry  Lawrence  cross- 
examined  Akram  Chunder  and  Bhop  Lai  as  to  their  story.  In 
three  or  four  minutes  Major  Mansfield  returned,  bringing  with 
him  Ram  Singh. 

"This  is  Mr.  Fullarton's  servant,  sir." 

"Do  you  know  these  two  men? "  Sir  Henry  asked. 

"  Yes,  sahib,  I  know  them  well.  They  are  Mr.  Groves' 
servants.  They  have  been  with  him  for  four  or  five  years; 
they  were  with  him  at  Ferozeshah  and  Sobraon." 

"So  they  were,"  Lord  Gough  said,  getting  up  from  the 
camp-chair  in  which  he  was  sitting  and  looking  at  them 
closely.  "  I  remember  their  being  with  him  at  Ferozeshah. 
Mr.  Groves  carried  messages  for  me  several  times  when  most 
of  my  staff  were  down,  and  I  noticed  then  how  coolly  those 
fellows  rode  after  him  whenever  he  moved  away  from  my  side." 

"There  is  no  farther  doubt  about  the  story,"  Sir  Henry 
Lawrence  said,  "  and  these  men  have  clearly  saved  Mr.  Groves 
in  the  way  they  have  stated." 


GUJERAT  349 

"Tell  them,  Sir  Henry,"  Lord  Gough  said,  "that  I  consider 
them  to  be  very  fine  fellows,  and  that  I  thank  them  for  their 
conduct  in  having  rescued  their  master.  As  for  the  informa- 
tion they  have  given,  that  is  our  affair,  and  we  can  reward  it. 
I  should  be  glad  if  you  could  give  them  a  hundred  rupees 
each  as  a  present  out  of  your  information  fund." 

Sir  Henry  repeated  Lord  Cough's  message  to  the  men, 
laying  stress  upon  the  difference  between  the  action  of  saving 
their  master's  life  and  the  information  they  had  brought.  "  For 
the  first,"  he  said,  "the  commander-in-chief  desires  to  pay 
you  honour.  Had  you  belonged  to  one  of  our  native  regiments 
he  would  have  made  you  officers.  As  it  is,  he  can  only  say 
that  he  honours  you  for  your  conduct,  and  himself  thanks  you 
for  having  saved  the  life  of  that  very  promising  young  officer, 
Mr.  Groves.  The  information  you  have  brought  is  valuable, 
and  for  that  he  asks  me  to  make  you  a  present  of  a  hundred 
rupees  each.  You  lost  your  horses,  of  course  ?  " 

"Yes,  sahib,  ours  and  the  master's." 

"  Come  round  to  me  in  the  morning.  I  will  give  you  an 
order  to  receive  the  two  hundred  rupees  and  to  take  the  three 
horses,  as  it  is  likely  enough  they  came  back  with  the  Lancers; 
if  not,  to  take  three  of  the  Sikh  horses  that  came  in  with 
them.  How  is  your  master  going  on?  "  he  asked  Ram  Singh. 

"He  is  better,  sahib;  he  can  talk  now,  and  he  has  asked 
several  times  whether  Mr.  Groves  has  been  heard  of.  It  will 
do  him  good  to  know  he  has  been  brought  back." 

The  interview  was  now  over,  and  the  two  men  went  back  to 
the  hospital,  and  on  their  arrival  there,  were  delighted  to  find 
that  Percy  was  conscious,  and  sat  with  him  by  turns  through 
the  night.  He  was  greatly  pleased  to  hear  that  Mr.  Fullarton 
had  not  been  killed,  as  he  feared. 

"Have  you  had  anything  to  eat?"  he  asked  towards  morn- 
ing. 

"No,  sahib,  but  that  does  not  matter." 

"It  matters  a  great  deal,"  he  said.     "I  am  sure  I  do  not 


350  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

know  how  you  are  to  draw  rations  here,  and  there  will  be  no 
means  of  buying  anything." 

He  thought  a  little,  and  when,  half  an  hour  later,  the  prin- 
cipal surgeon  stopped  beside  him  to  ask  him  how  he  felt  he 
said,  "  I  feel  queer  about  the  head,  and  weak,  but  that  is  all. 
I  am  worrying  about  my  men,  sir.  I  do  not  see  how  they  are 
to  draw  rations." 

"I  can  manage  that,"  the  surgeon  replied.  "If  they  are 
willing  to  help  here  I  will  put  them  on  the  list  as  hospital 
orderlies  and  draw  rations  for  them  with  the  others.  I  shall 
be  very  glad  if  they  will  do  so,  for  I  am  short  of  hands,  and 
want  help  terribly.  We  never  calculated  on  such  a  crowd  of 
wounded  as  we  have  got,  and  as,  at  present,  they  certainly 
won't  be  able  to  spare  us  fighting  men  to  act  as  hospital  order- 
lies, I  shall  be  very  pleased  to  have  your  fellows.  Then  one 
of  them  will  be  able  to  look  specially  after  you." 

Akram  Chunder  and  his  companion  embraced  the  offer  with 
great  satisfaction  when  Percy  translated  it,  and  were  soon  at 
work  in  their  new  duties.  As  soon  as  the  morning  meal  had 
been  served  Percy  told  Akram  that  he  had  better  go  at  once 
to  Sir  Henry  Lawrence  to  get  the  order  for  their  horses. 
"There  is  no  time  to  be  lost  about  that,"  he  said.  "They 
are  so  good  that  they  will  be  snapped  up  at  once  for  the  use 
of  officers  who  have  lost  their  own  chargers." 

Akram  found  the  horses,  as  he  had  hoped,  in  the  lines  of 
the  Lancers,  but  when  he  produced  his  order  and  claimed  them 
he  was  scoffed  at. 

"Look  here,  Bill;  here  is  a  likely  tale,"  one  of  the  men 
said  to  another.  "This  chap  has  got  an  order  signed  Henry 
Lawrence,  to  take  the  horses  belonging  to  himself  and  another 
chap  wherever  he  may  find  them  in  camp,  and  I  am  blowed 
if  he  doesn't  pitch  upon  these  two  chargers  that  the  major  and 
Captain  Wilkins  have  chosen  for  themselves.  Why,  anyone 
can  see  with  half  an  eye  that  they  are  English  hunters,  or  have 
got  a  lot  of  English  blood  in  them  anyway.  You  get  out  of 
this,  Johnny,  or  I  may  put  my  fist  between  your  two  eyes." 


GUJERAT  351 

Akram  quietly  walked  off,  and  held  the  paper  out  to  the  first 
officer  he  met. 

"Are  your  horses  here?  "  the  latter  asked  after  reading  it. 

"Yes,  sahib." 

The  officer  was  as  incredulous  as  the  troopers  had  been, 
that  a  native,  evidently  of  no  high  position,  could  have  owned 
such  horses;  and  the  major,  coming  up  and  hearing  the  story, 
angrily  ordered  Akram  out  of  camp  as  a  rogue.  The  man 
went  quietly  back  towards  the  political  officer's  house,  but  on 
the  way  he  met  Major  Mansfield.  He  saluted  and  told  him 
the  story.  "I  will  go  back  with  you,"  the  major  said;  "it  is 
no  use  troubling  Sir  Henry  Lawrence."  Major  Mansfield's 
interposition  proved  efficient,  and  as  soon  as  the  story  of  how 
the  two  men  had  sacrificed  their  horses  and  had  saved  their 
master's  life  was  told,  the  major  gave  orders  that  Akram 
should  take  the  two  animals.  "  I  heard  there  was  a  civilian 
and  two  men  joined  our  squadron  when  they  charged,  though 
nobody  noticed  them  fall  back  with  it.  But  how  on  earth 
came  two  Sikh  servants  to  have  such  horses  as  those?  " 

"  Groves'  uncle  is  the  Colonel  Groves  who  was  in  the  Sikh 
service  under  Runjeet  Singh,  and  he  has  held  the  fortress  of 
Djarma  ever  since.  I  know  he  got  two  or  three  English  thor- 
oughbreds over,  and  bred  some  horses.  The  third  horse  is 
evidently  a  native,  and  not  a  particularly  good  one." 

"Which  is  your  master's  horse,  man?  " 

"  He  rides  sometimes  one  and  sometimes  the  other  of  these 
two,  sahib.  His  own  horse  is  over  there,"  and  he  pointed 
towards  Russool ;  "  he  had  to  leave  it  behind  when  he  escaped 
from  Sher  Singh.  That  was  a  splendid  horse.  These  are 
good,  but  nothing  to  Sheik.  He  bought  this  native  pony 
when  he  escaped,  and  would  have  ridden  it,  but  we  could  not 
let  our  master  be  riding  on  a  little  native  horse  while  we  were 
on  fine  horses  that  his  uncle  gave  us." 

"That  accounts  for  it,  you  see,  major." 

"Well,  I  am  sorry  to  give  them  up,  but  of  course  there  is 


352  THROUGH  THE   SIKH  WAR 

no  help  for  it.  Groves  is  certainly  lucky  in  having  two  such 
servants,  and  it  would  be  a  shame  indeed  for  them  to  lose 
their  horses  after  having  behaved  so  uncommonly  well." 

So  the  horses  were  taken  over  and  picketed  with  those  of 
the  surgeons',  and  for  the  next  three  weeks  the  two  men 
worked  in  the  hospital.  Percy  had  for  a  few  days  been  very 
ill;  fever  set  in  from  the  inflammation  of  his  wound;  but  as 
soon  as  that  abated  he  gained  strength  rapidly,  and  at  the  end 
of  three  weeks  took  his  discharge  and  reported  himself  to  Sir 
Henry  Lawrence  as  ready  for  service. 

"You  won't  be  fit  for  service  for  another  month,  Mr. 
Groves.  But  it  is  just  as  well  for  you  to  be  out  of  hospital, 
for  you  will  pick  up  strength  faster  now  than  you  would  in 
there." 

By  this  time  the  camp  extended  over  a  large  space  of 
ground.  Everything  was  in  excellent  order,  and  but  few 
signs  were  visible  of  the  terrible  struggle  that  had  taken  place 
a  few  weeks  before.  Percy  shared  a  tent  with  another  young 
civilian.  His  head  was  still  bandaged  up,  and  it  would  be 
a  long  time  before  he  could  wear  any  but  the  softest  head-gear. 
He  consulted  the  doctors  rather  anxiously  as  to  whether  the 
hair  would  grow  again  on  the  patch,  three  inches  wide,  from 
the  top  of  his  head  down  to  his  ear. 

"Probably  it  will,  but  there  is  no  saying,  Groves.  If  it 
does  grow  it  will  probably  come  white." 

"I  don't  much  care  what  colour  it  comes,"  Percy  said,  "if 
only  it  does  come  so  as  to  hide  my  ear,  or  rather  my  half 
ear." 

"I  should  not  bother  about  that,"  the  surgeon  said.  "You 
can  let  the  hair  at  the  top  of  the  head  grow  long,  it  will  hide 
the  scar,  ear  and  all.  It  will  look  better  than  a  white  patch 
there." 

"I  suppose  it  would,"  Percy  said,  regarding  himself  in  the 
little  hand-mirror  rather  ruefully.  "A  white  patch  certainly 
would  not  look  well,  and  the  people  one  meets  would  be  always 


GUJERAT  353 

asking  how  it  came,  which  would  be  a  frightful  nuisance. 
Still,  if  it  comes  white  I  could  dye  it,  I  suppose." 

"I  should  not  bother  about  it,  Groves;  it  is  an  honourable 
scar." 

"Yes,  that  is  all  very  well,  doctor;  but  it  is  a  scar  for  all 
that." 

During  the  fortnight  that  had  elapsed  before  the  camp  was 
broken  up,  Percy  did  no  work,  but  took  a  short  ride  morning 
and  evening.  During  the  heat  of  the  day  he  sat  in  the 
shade  at  the  entrance  of  his  tent  and  read. 

On  the  nth  of  February  the  Sikhs  made  a  great  demon- 
stration, drove  in  a  patrolling  party,  and  seemed  as  if  they 
wished  to  bring  on  another  battle.  A  column  threatened  the 
rear  of  the  camp,  and  the  spies  brought  in  news  that  they  had 
determined  upon  attacking  us.  Lord  Gough  had  no  wish  to 
bring  on  a  battle  on  ground  where  the  Sikhs,  if  beaten,  could 
again  retire  into  the  jungle.  The  army  therefore  remained  in 
their  lines.  It  was  observed  that  the  array  of  tents  round 
Russool  had  considerably  diminished.  The  next  day  it  had 
entirely  disappeared. 

Great  anxiety  was  felt  in  camp  as  to  what  had  become  of 
the  Sikhs,  and  all  sorts  of  reports  were  current  as  to  Sher  Singh's 
intentions.  Some  believed  that  he  intended  to  cross  the 
Chenab  at  Wuzeerabad,  and  to  march  upon  Lahore.  The 
garrison  there  was  a  very  weak  one,  and  could  have  offered 
but  a  slight  resistance  if  attacked  by  so  large  a  force,  aided 
as  it  certainly  would  be  by  a  rising  of  the  populace.  Another 
report  was  to  the  effect  that  Sher  Singh  had  stated  that  his 
intention  was  to  make  forced  marches  to  Umritsur,  to  cross 
the  Sutlej,  and  advance  to  Delhi  and  capture  and  sack  the 
place  before  any  force  could  be  gathered  to  arrest  his  prog- 
ress. Were  not  one  or  other  of  these  plans  intended,  the 
only  explanation  why  the  Sikhs  should  desert  their  strongly 
intrenched  and  almost  inacessible  position,  was  that  they 
found  extreme  difficulty  in  supplying  their  force  with  food 


354  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

there;  and  indeed  it  was  known  from  deserters  that  they  had 
for  some  time  been  suffering  from  famine.  Moreover  they 
might  consider  that  if  successfully  attacked  on  the  flank  they 
would  be  cut  off  by  the  deep  ravine  between  their  intrench- 
ments  and  Russool,  and  by  the  river  still  farther  behind,  from 
making  their  escape. 

Late  in  the  evening  of  the  i2th  some  spies  brought  in  the 
information  that  Sher  Singh  was  marching  for  Gujerat.  In 
the  neighbourhood  of  this  town  the  Sikhs  had,  in  past  times, 
gained  several  important  victories,  and  they  regarded  the 
locality  as  being  specially  sacred  and  propitious  to  them. 
The  country  round  was  rich  and  fertile,  and  they  would  have 
no  difficulty  in  obtaining  provisions.  It  is  true  that  they 
would  have  to  fight  in  the  open,  but  their  confidence  had 
been  restored  by  their  success  at  Chillianwalla.  There  was, 
too,  a  probability  that  from  Gujerat  the  approach  of  General 
Whish's  force,  which  was  hurrying  up  from  Mooltan,  might 
be  intercepted. 

Chuttur  Singh  had  joined  his  son  with  a  force  from  the 
Peshawur  district  a  few  days  after  the  battle,  and  the  army  with 
which  he  retired  was  little  short  of  fifty  thousand  men.  On  the 
1 3th  Percy  rode  out  with  a  number  of  other  English  officers 
to  inspect  the  Sikh  works  round  Russool.  These  were  found 
to  be  extremely  formidable,  well  placed,  and  constructed  with 
great  skill,  and  all  congratulated  themselves  that  the  army  had 
been  spared  the  terrible  loss  that  would  certainly  have  befallen 
it  in  carrying  the  position.  That  evening  Brigadier  Cheape 
of  the  Royal  Engineers,  who  had  conducted  the  siege  of  Mool- 
tan, arrived  with  a  body  of  native  cavalry,  having  pushed  on 
rapidly  and  left  the  main  body  of  General  Whish's  force  some 
days  in  the  rear. 

On  the  morning  of  the  i4th  news  came  that  the  Sikhs  had 
occupied  Gujerat,  capturing  the  small  body  of  Pathan  horse 
stationed  there  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant  Nicholson. 
Major  Lawrence  was  also  a  prisoner  in  Sher  Singh's  camp,  hav- 


GUJERAT  355 

Kr] 

ing,  with  his  wife,  been  treacherously  handed  over  to  the  Sikhs 
by  an  Afghan  chief  with  whom  they  had  taken  refuge. 

The  next  morning  at  four  o'clock  the  troops  marched  for 
Lussoore.  Conflicting  reports  came  in  as  to  the  course  of  the 
Sikh  army;  but  the  balance  of  probability  was  that  they  were 
still  remaining  in  the  vicinity  of  Gujerat.  General  Whish 
had  already  sent  a  force  to  bar  their  passage  should  they  try 
to  cross  at  Wuzeerabad.  The  army  moved  slowly  forward  so 
as  to  be  able  to  meet  the  Sikhs  should  they  advance,  but  no 
engagement  was  desired  until  Whish,  with  the  Bengal  and 
Bombay  troops  who  had  been  engaged  with  him  in  the  siege 
of  Mooltan,  should  join. 

On  the  2oth  the  army  reached  Shadeewal,  effected  a  junc- 
tion with  two  of  General  Whish' s  brigades,  and  was  now 
ready  to  encounter  the  enemy.  On  the  following  morning  it 
advanced  towards  Gujerat,  across  a  plain  cultivated  in  many 
places  and  dotted  with  clumps  of  trees.  The  drums  of  the 
Sikhs  beating  to  arms  could  be  heard  in  the  distance,  and  the 
line  of  battle  was  formed.  General  Gilbert's  division  was  on 
the  right.  Next  to  him  was  the  division  of  General  Whish. 
Separated  from  them  by  a  deep  nullah  was  Colin  Campbell's 
division,  and  on  the  left  the  Bombay  troops  under  Brigadier- 
general  Dundas.  Each  of  these  divisions  was  accompanied 
by  batteries  of  field  and  horse  artillery.  Part  of  the  cavalry 
was  on  either  flank,  while  two  regiments  of  native  cavalry  and 
two  of  infantry  were  in  rear  covering  the  baggage. 

The  Sikhs  opened  fire  while  our  force  was  still  a  considerable 
distance  away,  and  the  line  was  halted  and  the  artillery  and 
skirmishers  moved  to  the  front.  Just  behind  the  line  of  the 
infantry  there  was  a  lofty  mound  commanding  a  view  of  the 
whole  plain,  and  on  this  the  staff  and  all  the  political  officers 
who  were  free  to  choose  their  position  took  up  their  post. 

"It  will  be  nothing  to-day,"  Akram  Chunder  said  to  Percy. 
They  had  dismounted,  Bhop  Lai  taking  charge  of  the  three 
horses  while  his  comrade  had  posted  himself  just  behind  his 


356  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

master.  "If  they  could  not  stop  the  English  before,  when 
they  had  great  intrenchments  and  heavy  guns,  what  chance 
can  they  have  now?  " 

The  British  guns  speedily  opened  fire,  and  very  soon  ob- 
tained the  mastery  over  those  of  the  Sikhs,  whose  fire  slack- 
ened. In  a  short  time  their  guns  were  withdrawn,  the  infantry 
falling  back  with  them  to  a  village  in  a  strong  position  where 
they  were  almost  hidden  from  sight.  The  British  infantry 
moved  forward  as  soon  as  the  enemy's  fire  slackened,  Penny's 
brigade  of  Gilbert's  division  advancing  to  storm  the  village. 
It  was  flanked  by  two  Sikh  batteries,  and  the  brigade  advanced 
under  a  shower  of  balls,  dashed  across  a  deep  nullah,  poured 
in  a  heavy  volley,  and  then  went  at  the  village  with  the  bayo- 
net. The  Sikhs  in  the  village  fought  stoutly,  many  of  them 
shutting  themselves  up  in  the  houses  and  defending  them- 
selves till  the  last. 

As  soon  as  the  British  showed  on  the  other  side  of  the  village 
the  guns  of  the  Sikh  batteries  opened  upon  them.  The  bat- 
tery of  horse-artillery  galloped  up  and  replied  vigorously;  the 
whole  line  of  infantry  pressed  forward,  and  the  enemy  deserted 
their  guns  and  fled.  The  2d  Bengal  Europeans,  that  had  suf- 
fered heavily  at  Chillianwalla,  sustained  a  loss  of  six  officers 
and  one  hundred  and  forty-three  men  killed  or  wounded, 
while  of  the  two  native  regiments  with  them  the  3ist  lost  one 
hundred  and  twenty-eight  and  the  yoth  forty-four  killed  or 
wounded. 

This  position  carried,  the  whole  line  advanced,  and  although 
the  enemy  fought  with  dogged  courage  they  were  everywhere 
bfeaten  back.  Harvey's  brigade  with  considerable  loss  car- 
ried the  village  of  Chowta-kabrah  gallantly.  The  Sikhs  as 
they  retired  were  pounded  by  the  guns  of  three  troops  of 
horse-artillery,  but  the  enemy's  artillery  fire  was  so  heavy  that 
one  battery  had  to  send  to  the  rear  for  horses  before  it  could 
move  its  guns,  while  another  suffered  such  losses  that  they 
were  obliged  to  get  men  from  the  loth  Foot  to  work  the 


GUJERAT  A       357 

pieces.  The  Sikh  cavalry  made  frequent  efforts  to  work  round 
the  right  flank  and  get  into  the  rear,  but  were  checked  each 
time  by  a  troop  of  horse-artillery  and  by  the  i4th  Dragoons, 
although  at  one  time  a  party  penetrated  so  closely  to  the  heavy 
guns  where  Lord  Gough  had  taken  up  his  station,  that  his 
personal  escort  charged  and  drove  them  back. 

Steadily  the  whole  line  pressed  forward,  The  Sikh  infantry 
several  times  gathered  in  great  numbers,  supported  by  their 
cavalry,  to  make  a  rush  to  meet  us,  but  were  each  time 
checked  by  the  accurate  and  rapid  fire  of  our  artillery,  and 
were  pressed  back  until  Gujerat  was  passed  on  its  eastern  side 
by  Campbell's  division,  and  by  the  Bombay  troops  on  its  west. 
The  latter  had  met  with  but  little  resistance.  On  the  right  of 
the  Sikh  line  the  Afghan  horse,  fifteen  hundred  strong,  with  a 
large  number  of  the  Sikh  irregulars,  now  threatened  our  left 
flank.  They  were  charged  by  the  Scinde  horse  and  two  squad- 
rons of  the  gth  Lancers,  driven  from  the  field,  and  two  of 
their  standards  taken.  The  whole  of  the  enemy's  right  wing 
now  fled  and  were  pursued  by  the  British  cavalry  and  horse- 
artillery,  and  the  rout  of  the  Sikhs  was  complete. 

The  infantry  halted  to  collect  the  guns,  ammunition,  and  bag- 
gage of  the  Sikhs;  but  for  many  miles  the  cavalry  and  a  troop  of 
the  Bombay  horse-artillery  pursued  the  flying  foe,  scattering 
them  whenever  they  tried  to  rally,  capturing  many  guns,  and 
killing  vast  numbers  of  fugitives,  no  quarter  being  given  by 
the  cavalry,  who  remembered  that  every  one  of  their  own 
wounded  comrades  had  been  killed  and  mutilated  by  them. 
The  cavalry  did  not  halt  until  they  had  reached  a  point  four- 
teen miles  from  the  field  of  battle. 

The  Sikh  troops  who  had  remained  in  Gujerat  offered  a 
stout  resistance,  but  were,  after  some  hard  fighting,  overcome. 
A  singular  proof  was  given  that  the  Bunnoo  regiments  retained 
the  discipline  they  had  learned  irom  British  officers  to  the 
last,  for  when  resistance  fairly  ceased  the  Sikh  sentries  placed 
round  the  native  hospitals  were  found  marching  backward  and 


358  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

forward  on  their  beats  as  unconcernedly  as  if  absolutely 
unconscious  of  the  events  that  were  taking  place. 

Fifty-three  guns  were  captured.  They  had  in  almost  every 
case  been  defended  to  the  last.  One  large  gun  had  been  the 
object  of  fire  by  a  whole  British  battery.  All  the  men  had 
been  killed  but  two;  but  as  the  British  line  advanced  these 
two  alone  continued  to  work  it.  One  fell  with  a  musket-ball, 
but  the  other,  unaided,  fired  two  more  rounds,  and  only  when 
the  British  line  was  close  at  hand  sought  safety  in  flight.  The 
Afghan  horse,  after  leaving  the  field,  did  not  draw  rein  until 
they  crossed  the  river  Jhelum,  a  distance  of  over  thirty  miles. 

The  loss  of  the  army  in  this  great  victory  was  comparatively 
trifling,  but  5  officers  and  76  men  were  killed,  24  officers  and 
595  men  wounded.  The  loss  of  the  Sikhs  was  very  large. 
They  had  brought  sixty  pieces  of  artillery  into  the  field,  and 
carried  off  but  seven  of  them.  General  Gilbert's  division 
followed  up  the  enemy  with  such  rapidity  that  the  Sikh  chief- 
tains, despairing  of  successful  resistance,  surrendered  in  num- 
bers. Chuttur  Singh  and  Sher  Singh  were  among  the  first  to 
propose  surrender,  and  all  the  other  leaders,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  two,  came  in.  Forty-one  guns  were  handed  over,  and 
16,000  men  laid  down  their  arms.  In  all,  the  enemy  lost  167 
guns  during  the  campaign.  Their  possession  of  so  large  an 
amount  of  ordnance  was  a  great  surprise  to  the  British,  who 
had  believed  that  in  the  previous  campaign  they  had  captured 
almost  the  whole  of  the  Sikh  guns.  The  greater  portion  of 
these  pieces  had  doubtless  been  hidden  by  the  sirdars,  those 
captured  in  the  Sutlej  campaign  having  for  the  most  part  been 
the  artillery  of  the  regular  army.  As  a  proof  that  this  was  the 
case,  an  immense  number  of  guns  were  found  buried  in  the 
earth  at  Govindghur  when  we  took  possession  of  that  place. 
All  the  Sikhs  who  surrendered  or  were  captured  after  the  battle 
of  Gujerat  were  allowed  to  return  to  their  homes  after  being 
deprived  of  their  arms.  They  were  permitted  to  carry  away 
their  clothes  and  horses. 


1'EK.CY    HAS    AN    INTERVIEW    WITH    SHER    SINGH. 


GUJERAT  359 

Chuttur  Singh  and  Sher  Singh  surrendered  at  Wuzeerabad. 
They  came  in  on  elephants,  with  a  few  retainers  and  a  small 
escort  of  Bunnoo  infantry.  All  had  to  lay  down  their  arms 
before  crossing  the  ford  to  meet  Lord  Gough,  who  with  his 
staff  and  a  large  number  of  officers  was  on  the  opposite  bank. 
Sher  Singh  had  released  Major  Lawrence  from  his  confine- 
ment, and  had  sent  him  to  the  British  head-quarters  to  negoti- 
ate the  terms  of  surrender,  and  that  officer  met  him  as  with 
his  father  he  crossed  the  bridge.  The  scene  was  an  impressive 
one,  as  Chuttur  Singh  and  his  son,  the  two  men  who  had 
involved  their  country  in  the  struggle  and  had  brought  such 
terrible  disasters  upon  it,  dismounted  from  their  elephants 
and  paid  their  respects  to  the  British  general.  Sher  Singh 
was  a  rebel  against  his  own  government  as  well  as  against  us, 
but  at  least  he  had  not  ill-treated  the  three  or  four  British 
officers,  or  the  two  British  ladies,  who  had  fallen  into  his 
hands,  and  had  sent  back  unharmed  the  few  British  soldiers 
who  had  been  captured  and  brought  into  his  camp.  Major 
Edwardes'  despatches  too  had  completely  established  the  fact 
that  he  had  for  a  long  time,  under  most  difficult  circumstances, 
been  faithful,  and  that  he  had  at  last  yielded  to  something 
very  like  force  on  the  part  of  his  soldiers.  Although,  there- 
fore, his  reception  by  Lord  Gough  was  cold,  it  was  very  differ- 
ent to  that  which  he  would  have  received  had  his  rebellion, 
like  that  of  Moolraj,  been  sullied  by  the  murder  in  cold  blood 
of  English  prisoners. 

As  the  rajah  drew  off  from  his  interview  with  the  commander- 
in-chief  his  eye  fell  upon  Percy.  He  ordered  his  mahout  to 
stop  his  elephant.  Percy  rode  forward  to  him,  and  conversed 
with  him  for  several  minutes,  Sher  Singh  expressing  his  satis- 
faction that  he  had  met  with  no  injury  in  effecting  his  escape. 

"I  liked  you,  and  always  treated  you  well,  did  I  not?  and 
you  will  stand  my  friend  now?"  he  asked  anxiously. 

"  I  am  but  a  young  officer,  and  my  friendship  can  little  avail 
your  Highness,"  Percy  said;  "but  assuredly  I  will  testify,  and 


^>/Qt 


360     -f'  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

have  already  testified,  that  I  was  well  treated.  I  was  allowed 
to  keep  my  servants  and  my  horses,  I  was  well  fed  and  cared 
for,  and,  save  that  I  had  not  my  liberty,  had  everything  that  I 
could  desire.  I  thank  your  Highness  sincerely  for  the  manner 
in  which  I  was  treated." 

Percy  was  reining  back  his  horse  when  he  heard  a  low 
whinny.  He  turned  round  with  a  start,  and  saw  one  of  the 
rajah's  officers  struggling  with  his  horse,  which  was  trying  to 
turn  aside  out  of  the  procession.  "Why,  Sheik,  is  it  you?" 
Percy  shouted  in  delight.  And  the  horse,  rearing  up,  all  but 
unseated  its  rider,  made  two  bounds  to  his  side,  and  thrust  its 
head  against  his  hand. 

The  little  stir  caused  Sher  Singh  to  look  around.  "  It  is 
my  horse,  rajah,"  Percy  said;  "  it  knows  me  again." 

The  rajah  nodded.  "I  had  forgotten  it,"  he  said.  "I 
knew  that  you  had  escaped,  and  never  gave  a  thought  to  your 
horse.  You  must  give  it  up,  Aliram;  it  is  the  property  of  the 
sahib." 

With  an  angry  scowl  the  native  alighted. 

"I  shall  not  leave  you  horseless,"  Percy  said.  And  riding 
back  through  the  officers,  who  were  looking  on  in  amazement 
at  the  scene,  he  joined  his  two  followers,  who  were  sitting 
their  horses  at  some  little  distance  in  the  rear.  Both  gave  a 
loud  exclamation  of  pleasure  as  Percy  rode  up,  leading  Sheik. 
He  was  himself  mounted  on  Bhop  Lai's  horse.  He  dismounted 
and  sprang  on  to  Sheik.  "  Bhop  Lai,  mount  your  own  horse 
and  take  the  one  you  are  on  to  the  Sikh  officer.  You  will  find 
him  standing  there.  He  annexed  Sheik,  but  I  don't  want  to 
give  him  the  mortification  of  tramping  on  foot  after  the 
rajah."  Bhop  Lai  did  as  he  was  ordered,  and  then  rejoined 
Percy,  who  was  overjoyed  at  recovering  the  splendid  animal 
his  uncle  had  given  him. 

On  the  30th  of  March  the  governor-general  issued  a  proc- 
lamation declaring  the  Punjaub  annexed  to  the  British  do- 
minions in  India.  A  large  pension  was  assigned  to  Dhuleep 


GUJERAT  361 

Singh,  who  was  placed  under  the  tuition  of  an  English  officer, 
and  the  administration  of  the  Punjaub  was  intrusted  to  a 
board  consisting  of  Sir  Henry  Lawrence,'  his  brother  John, 
and  Mr.  Mansell,  a  civilian,  to  whom  was  assigned  the  finan- 
cial administration  of  the  province. 

Two  days  after  the  surrender  of  Sher  Singh,  Percy  obtained 
two  months'  leave  of  absence,  and  started  for  Djarma,  which 
was  distant  about  a  hundred  miles  from  Wuzeerabad.  The 
passage  of  Gilbert's  division  north  had  already  restored  tran- 
quillity, and  he  followed  the  main  road  as  far  as  Rawal  Pin- 
dee,  where  a  British  garrison  had  been  left,  without  encoun- 
tering the  slightest  interruption.  Then  he  struck  off  along 
the  foot  of  the  hills  on  his  way  to  the  fortress  thirty  miles  off. 

At  Rawal  Pindee  he  heard  that  his  uncle  had  ridden  in  with 
two  hundred  horsemen  on  the  arrival  of  General  Gilbert  at 
the  town,  and  had  placed  his  troops  at  the  general's  disposal. 
There  was,  however,  no  occasion  for  their  services,  the 
Afghans  having  already  evacuated  the  district  of  Peshawur, 
and  there  being  no  longer  any  Sikh  force  under  arms  sufficient 
to  offer  resistance  to  the  British  column. 

"  We  need  not  be  afraid  of  Ghoolab  Singh  this  time,  sahib, " 
Akram  Chunder  said  as  they  rode  out  of  Rawal  Pindee. 

"  No.  The  old  fox  has  played  his  game  as  well  now  as  he 
did  in  the  last  campaign.  Throughout,  he  continued  to  prom- 
ise to  join  Sher  Singh,  as  we  learnt  when  we  were  prisoners, 
while,  on  the  other  hand,  he  lent  money  to  our  people  when 
they  needed  it  for  purchasing  provisions.  But  it  was  not 
until  just  before  Gujerat,  when  he  saw  that  there  was  no  longer 
the  least  doubt  which  side  would  prove  triumphant,  that  he 
really  put  his  troops  in  motion  and  offered  to  act  in  any  way 
he  might  be  required  against  the  Sikhs.  However,  he  knows 
now  that  there  is  no  possibility  of  his  ever  getting  a  foothold 
across  the  Jhelum.  It  is  certain  that  in  a  week  or  two  we 
shall  hear  that  the  whole  of  the  Punjaub  is  annexed  by  Eng- 
land, and  I  and  my  uncle  might  pay  him  a  visit  at  Serinagur 


362  THROUGH  THE   SIKH  WAR 

without  the  least  fear  that  he  would  receive  us  in  any  but  a  cour- 
teous and  hospitable  manner.  Djama  is  as  good  as  British 
territory  now.  I  daresay  my  uncle  has  got  the  British  flag 
waving  over  the  fortress  already.  The  Indian  government 
have  no  reason  either  to  like  or  trust  Ghoolab,  and,  if  he  gave 
them  cause,  have  only  to  stretch  out  their  hand  to  take 
Cashmere." 

"  It  would  be  the  best  thing  that  could  happen  for  the  coun- 
try," said  Akram.  "Then  the  people  would  be  able  to  till 
their  fields  and  weave  their  shawls  in  peace  and  quiet,  afraid 
neither  of  foreign  invaders  nor  of  oppressive  rulers." 

As  they  approachedithe  fortress  they  could  see  a  flag  waving 
over  its  highest  point. 

"I  thought  my  uncle  would  have  it  up,"  Percy  exclaimed. 
"  It  is  too  far  away  to  see  the  colours,  but  I  am  sure  what  they 
are." 

Percy  rode  fast  now,  walked  up  the  long  hill,  and  then  gal- 
loped to  the  gate.  It  was  open  and  the  drawbridge  down. 
He  waved  his  hand  to  the  men  who  saluted  as  he  rode  in,  and 
kept  on  without  drawing  rein  until  he  sprang  from  his  horse  at 
the  steps,  where  his  uncle,  who  had  been  warned  of  his  ap- 
proach, stood  waiting  to  meet  him. 

"Welcome  back,  Percy;  welcome  back!  It  is  eleven 
months  since  you  rode  out,  and  you  have  no  doubt  gone 
through  much,  though  I  have  heard  nothing  of  you." 

"There  were  no  means  of  sending  letters,  uncle;  but  I  have 
often  thought  of  you,  and  wondered  how  you  have  been  get- 
ting on." 

"I  sent  three  letters  off,  Percy.  Did  you  get  none  of 
them?" 

" None,  uncle." 

"And  you  know  nothing  of  what  has  happened  since  you 
have  been  away?  " 

"Nothing,"  Percy  repeated,  struck  by  his  uncle's  grave 
face.  "Nothing  serious  has  happened,  I  hope?" 


GUJERAT  363 

"Come  in,  lad,"  the  colonel  said,  taking  his  arm  and  lead- 
ing him  into  the  private  apartments. 

Percy  looked  round,  expecting  to  see  the  Ranee  appear. 

"She  is  gone,  lad." 

"Gone,  uncle!" 

"Ay,  lad,  she  died  ten  months  ago,  a  month  after  you 
left  us." 

Percy  stood  aghast.  "  My  dear  uncle,  how  sorry  I  am  !  I 
never  dreamt  of  such  a  home-coming  as  this.  My  poor  aunt ! 
•What  a  terrible  loss  for  you !  " 

"Terrible,  lad.  I  am  getting  over  it  now,  but  for  a  time  I 
was  crushed,  indeed  for  some  days  I  was  myself  at  death's 
door,  and  only  pulled  through  by  God's  mercy." 

"Why,  what  was  it,  uncle?     Fever?" 

"Poison,  lad." 

"  Poison,  uncle !  "  Percy  repeated,  horror-struck. 

"That  is  what  it  was,  my  boy.  Ghoolab's  work  again,  I 
have  no  doubt,  though  I  cannot  prove  it.  Would  to  heaven 
I  could,  for  I  would  ride  to  Serinagur  with  a  hundred  men, 
force  my  way  into  his  presence  if  need  be,  accuse  him  of 
the  deed,  and  blow  out  his  brains.  But  I  have  not  a  shadow 
of  proof.  It  happened,  as  I  told  you,  a  month,  or  maybe 
six  weeks,  after  you  had  left.  The  news  had  come  of  the 
rising  at  Mooltan  and  the  murder  of  Agnew  and  Anderson. 
We  were  in  great  anxiety  about  you,  knowing  you  were  with 
them,  Mahtab  especially;  but,  as  I  told  her,  had  you  been 
killed  also,  we  should  have  heard  of  it,  and  that  you  were  not 
the  sort  of  fellow  to  be  caught  in  a  trap,  and  I  had  no  doubt 
you  had  got  out  of  it  somehow.  A  day  or  two  after,  she  said 
to  me,  'You  must  be  especially  careful  how,  Roland.  Ghoo- 
lab  has  a  hand  in  every  trouble  that  takes  place  in  the  Pun- 
jaub.  No  doubt  he  will  do  as  he  did  before,  play  one  side 
against  the  other,  send  promises  to  each  and  do  nothing  until 
he  sees  how  matters  go;  but  he  will  think  that  at  any  rate  if 
there  is  war  and  strife  he  will  be  free  to  do  as  he  likes  up 


364  THROUGH    THE   SIKH   WAR 

here  in  the  north,  and  he  will  likely  enough  try  once  again  to 
encompass  your  life."  I  felt  that  that  was  probable  enough, 
and  kept  a  more  vigilant  guard  than  usual.  One  day  after 
dining  we  were  both  taken  suddenly  ill.  Two  hours  later  she 
was  dead.  I  pulled  through,  but  I  looked  death  very  closely 
in  the  face." 

"And  did  ytm  find  out  who  the  murderer  was,  uncle?  " 
"  No,  my  boy,  nor  have  I  found  out  now.  I  am  as  sure  as 
to  the  mover  in  the  plot,  but  not  as  to  his  instrument.  I 
found,  as  soon  as  I  had  recovered,  that  the  cook  and  other 
servants  had  all  been  seized  and  caged  up.  Had  I  died,  no 
doubt  they  would  all  have  been  tortured  and  put  to  death;  but 
the  officers  knew  me  well  enough  to  feel  sure  that  I  should 
be  angry  at  it  did  I  recover.  I  had  no  ground  for  suspicion 
against  one  more  than  another.  I  cross-questioned  the  cook 
closely,  but  beyond  protesting  his  innocence  I  could  get  noth- 
ing out  of  him.  He  had  cooked  the  dinner  as  usual,  but  was 
not,  as  he  said,  all  the  time  standing  over  his  pots.  Any  of 
the  other  servants  might  while  his  back  was  turned,  or  while 
bringing  things  up  from  the  cool  cellar  as  he  required  them, 
have  dropped  poison  into  the  cooking  pot.  There  was  no 
denying  this.  The  other  servants  with  equal  vehemence  pro- 
tested their  innocence.  The  officers  wanted  me  to  use  tor- 
ture, but  this  I  would  not  hear  of.  I  might  have  tortured 
half  a  dozen  innocent  men  before  I  came  to  the  guilty  one. 
Besides  having  an  Englishman's  abhorrence  of  such  means, 
I  could  not  rely  on  anything  wrung  from  a  man.  A  weak 
man  while  he  is  in  his  agony  will  acknowledge  anything  re- 
quired of  him,  will  confess  any  crime,  will  accuse  anyone; 
while  a  guilty  one  of  stronger  nerve  will  die  protesting  his 
innocence.  They  were  all  examined  closely,  but  none  could 
say  that  he  saw  any  stranger,  that  is,  anyone  outside  the  house- 
hold, enter  the  kitchen;  but  as  at  times  the  room  seems  to 
have  been  entirely  empty,  anyone  might  have  slipped  in  un- 
perceived." 


GUJERAT  365 

"And  since  then  you  have  suspected  no  one,  uncle?  " 
"No  one,  Percy.     None  of  the  sen-ants  have  left,  all  are 
still  with  me." 

"What!  have  you  kept  them  still  about  you?" 
"  Yes.  All  appeared  so  utterly  distressed  and  broken-down 
at  the  death  of  their  mistress,  and  at  the  suspicion  that  rested 
upon  them,  that  I  could  not  bring  myself  to  discharge  them. 
Indeed,  so  great  was  the  fury  of  the  people  throughout  the 
whole  district,  that  I  believe  had  I  turned  them  out  through 
the  gates,  their  lives  would  have  been  sacrificed.  Besides, 
how  could  I  rely  upon  a  fresh  set  of  servants  more  than  upon 
those  who  have  been  with  us  long,  and  who  apparently  cared 
for  us?  Moreover,  there  was  a  certainty  that  every  one  of 
them  would  suspect  the  others,  and  that  each  would  make 
every  effort  to  find  out  the  one  by  whose  deed  suspicion  and 
disgrace  had  fallen  upon  them.  They  would  naturally  watch 
each  other  as  a  cat  watches  mice.  The  kitchen  would  never 
be  left  empty  again.  There  would  be  at  least  two  in  it,  and 
it  would  be  next  to  impossible  for  the  attempt  to  be  repeated 
unseen.  The  cook  himself  might  indeed  have  slipped  poison 
into  the  curry  or  other  dish  before  compounding  it,  but  I  was 
convinced  that  whoever  was  the  assassin  it  was  not  the  cook 
himself,  for  he  must  have  known  that  suspicion  would  fall 
upon  him,  and  that  had  I  died  his  torture  and  death  were 
certain." 

"Then  you  think  that  it  was  someone  outside  your  house, 
uncle?" 

"  I  do  not  say  that,  Percy.  I  only  say  that  I  suspect  no 
one.  After  the  discovery  that  the  rascally  steward  you  shot 
was  a  traitor,  I  can  never  feel  sure  of  anyone,  therefore  it  may 
have  been  one  of  the  sen-ants,  it  may  have  been  one  of  the 
soldiers,  it  may  have  been  a  stranger  inside  the  gates.  At 
any  rate  no  fresh  attempt  has  been  made,  but  it  was  some 
time,  Percy,  before  I  got  to  enjoy  my  food  again." 


CHAPTER   XXI 

RETIRED 

T)ERCY  had  felt  hungry  when  he  rode  into  the  fortress,  but 
A  although  he  saw  his  uncle  eat  as  heartily  as  usual,  his 
appetite  seemed  to  desert  him,  and  he  ate  very  sparingly  of 
each  dish  placed  before  him.  His  uncle  smiled. 

"You  are  not  such  a  good  trencher-man  as  you  were,  Percy." 

"Oh,  I  am  all  right,  uncle;  but  just  at  first  the  thought  that 
any  of  these  dishes  may  be  poisoned  is  an  unpleasant  one." 

"You  will  get  over  it  in  time.  Frankly,  I  do  not  think  that 
there  is  any  ground  for  uneasiness.  From  the  day  Gough 
crossed  the  Sutlej  I  felt  safe;  from  the  day  Gujerat  was  won  I 
have  felt  absolutely  at  my  ease.  I  have  no  longer  the  slightest 
fear  of  Ghoolab.  This  district  is  part  of  the  Punjaub,  and 
the  Punjaub  will  assuredly  be  annexed  to  British  India."  % 

"Yes,  uncle,  they  say  the  proclamation  will  be  out  in 
another  fortnight  or  so." 

"That  being  so,  lad,  Ghoolab' s  game  is  finally  up.  Did  I 
die  to-morrow,  surely  no  nominee  of  his  would  obtain  the 
appointment  of  governor,  or  whatever  your  people  call  him, 
of  a  district  adjoining  Cashmere.  He  may  not  like  me,  he 
may  owe  me  a  grudge  for  thwarting  him  so  long,  but  he  has 
no  longer  the  slightest  interest  in  my  death;  and  although 
Ghoolab  would  without  scruple  remove  a  hundred  men  who 
stood  in  his  way,  he  would  not  run  the  slightest  risk — and 

366 


RETIRED  367 

there  is  always  a  certain  risk  of  a  tool  turning  traitor — when 
there  was  nothing  whatever  to  be  gained  by  it." 

"  I  hear  that  you  rode  into  Rawal  Pindee  to  meet  General 
Gilbert's  column,  as  it  came  through." 

"Yes,  I  took  all  my  cavalry  over,  but  by  the  time  we  got 
there  all  opposition  had  ceased,  and  the  sirdars  were  pouring 
in  to  make  their  submission,  and  beg  for  forgiveness.  So 
there  was  no  occasion  for  their  services.  Of  course  he  thanked 
me,  and  said  that  he  would  report  my  offer." 

"I  almost  thought  you  might  come  down  and  join  us, 
uncle." 

"  I  thought  it  over,  lad,  but  there  might  have  been  trouble 
here  in  my  absence;  but  I  thought  I  would  keep  my  force 
together,  so  that  if  there  should  be  any  tough  fighting  in  the 
north,  I  should  be  able  to  march  away  horse  and  foot  to  join 
our  men.  I  did  not  calculate  upon  so  complete  and  sudden  a 
collapse  of  the  Sikhs.  Now  we  have  talked  enough  about 
myself;  it  is  time  that  you  tell  me  the  story  of  your  adven- 
tures, of  which  as  yet  I  know  nothing,  and  how  you  came  by 
that  desperately  ugly  wound  on  your  head." 

It  was  late  before  Percy  finished  the  story  of  his  adventures. 

"  You  have  had  great  luck,  lad,  to  have  got  so  well  out  of 
your  scrapes,"  the  colonel  said.  "Well,  it  is  late  now,  and 
we  must  be  off  to  bed;  we  shall  have  plenty  of  time  to  talk 
matters  over  in  the  morning." 

"I  should  think,  uncle,"  Percy  said,  when  they  had  lighted 
their  cigars  after  breakfast,  "  that  the  government  will  recog- 
nize your  position,  and  either  grant  you  the  same  power  over 
your  district  that  the  sirdars  have  over  their  estates,  or  else 
that  they  will  appoint  you  as  their  official  over  the  district." 

"  I  have  no  doubt  they  would  do  so,  Percy,  were  I  willing 
to  accept  it;  but  I  have  quite  made  up  my  mind  to  give  it  all 
up  and  go  home." 

"You  have,  uncle  !  "  Percy  exclaimed  in  surprise. 

"  Yes,  I  have  stuck  here  all  these  years  for  three  reasons : 


368  THROUGH   THE   SIKH    WAR 

first,  because  I  am  an  obstinate  beggar,  and  would  not  be 
turned  out;  secondly,  because  my  wife  would  not  have  liked 
to  leave  her  native  land,  and  would  never  have  been  happy  in 
England;  thirdly,  because  the  people  of  my  district  have  been 
rich  and  prosperous  under  me,  and  I  was  not  going  to  hand 
them  over  to  be  pillaged  and  robbed  by  one  of  these  Sikh 
harpies.  Now,  however,  the  case  is  altogether  changed.  If 
I  go,  I  go  of  my  own  free  will  and  choosing.  Mahtab  has 
gone,  and  there  is  no  longer  anything  to  tie  me  to  India. 
Lastly,  I  can  with  confidence  hand  over  the  district  to  English 
administrators,  secure  that  the  people  will  not  be  taxed 
unfairly,  and  will  be  safe  from  all  oppression  and  extortion. 
During  the  last  two  years  I  have  reduced  my  force  here  con- 
siderably. I  was  certain  that  after  the  lesson  we  gave  them, 
there  was  no  fear  of  their  ever  again  making  an  open  assault 
on  the  place.  I  began  by  not  filling  up  vacancies  caused 
by  death  or  from  men  being  superannuated.  Fortunately, 
there  is  a  good  deal  of  cultivable  land  down  this  valley,  and, 
indeed,  in  other  parts  of  the  district,  and  I  have  given  grants 
of  small  holdings  to  all  who  were  willing  to  take  their 
discharge." 

"  I  noticed  that  there  was  a  great  change  in  the  valley  be- 
low, since  I  went  away,  uncle,  that  fields  have  been  marked 
out,  and  that  there  was  quite  a  village  down  where  the  Sikhs 
were  encamped  when  they  besieged  us." 

"  Yes,  over  two  hundred  holdings  have  been  taken  up  there. 
I  granted  them  free  of  all  taxes  for  the  first  three  years,  gave 
those  men  who  had  no  savings  a  little  assistance  in  the  way 
of  a  loan,  and  in  time  there  will  be  a  large  and,  I  hope,  thriv- 
ing village  there.  I  have  urged  the  men  to  keep  up  a  certain 
organization  among  themselves, — to  form,  in  fact,  a  kind  of 
military  colony,  so  as  to  be  in  a  position  to  resist  dacoits  or 
attacks  by  the  marauding  hill  tribes.  I  have  similarly  settled 
that  other  valley  three  miles  to  the  north;  altogether  I  have 
given  a  start  to  nearly  a  thousand  of  the  men.  They  have 


RETIRED  369 

served  me  faithfully,  and  nothing  would  induce  me  to  go 
away  and  abandon  them.  I  think  that  it  is  very  likely  a  force 
may  be  formed  by  our  people  for  the  protection  of  the  fron- 
tier; and,  as  you  and  Mr.  Fullarton,  with  whom  I  have  had 
a  good  deal  of  correspondence,  and  the  Lawrences,  are  all 
aware  that  the  men  have  behaved  most  faithfully  and  can  be 
trusted,  I  hope  I  shall  be  able  to  get  all  those  who  wish  to 
continue  soldiering  to  be  mustered  into  the  service." 

"I  should  think  you  might  manage  that,  uncle;  one  or 
other  of  the  Lawrences,  perhaps  both,  are  certain  to  be  ap- 
pointed commissioners  of  the  Punjaub.  Of  course,  I  am  not 
in  a  position  to  speak  to  them  on  such  a  subject,  but  I  am 
sure  Mr.  Fullarton  would  do  so.  I  did  not  see  him  after  I 
was  wounded,  as  before  I  was  about  he  had  been  taken  down 
to  Lahore.  I  heard  that  he  was  recovering  fast,  and  was 
expected  to  rejoin  the  head-quarters  camp  in  a  short  time. 
Having  been  so  long  on  the  frontier,  I  should  think  probably 
he  will  get  a  large  district  here,  but  at  any  rate  he  would,  I 
am  sure,  bring  your  matter  before  the  Lawrences." 

"  I  should  think  it  by  no  means  improbable,  Percy,  that 
they  may  appoint  you  district  magistrate,  or  collector,  or 
whatever  they  call  it,  of  this  district;  that  is,  if  they  keep  it 
as  a  district." 

"I  should  think  they  are  not  likely  to  do  that,  uncle. 
Rawal  Pindee  will  be  made,  I  should  say,  the  centre  of  a  dis- 
trict of  which  this  will  form  part.  Still,  possibly  I  may  be 
appointed  an  assistant  in  this  district,  as  I  know  the  country 
and  the  people  so  well;  and  if  so,  I  will  follow  up  the  meth- 
ods that  have  made  it  in  your  hands  the  most  flourishing  little 
corner  of  the  Punjaub,  in  spite  of  the  greater  part  of  it  being 
merely  hill  country." 

"Well,  Percy,  I  don't  think  you  can  do  better  than  stick  to 
it.  You  have  got  a  splendid  start  in  the  service,  and  have 
every  chance  of  rising  in  it  rapidly.  It  is  good  for  you  to 
work,  and  the  exciting  scenes  you  have  passed  through  dur- 


370  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

ing  the  last  four  years  have  been  a  good  preparation  for  mak- 
ing you  an  active  and  efficient  officer.  But  what  I  want  to 
say  is  this :  if  your  health  fails,  or  if,  sooner  or  later,  you 
marry  and  would  like  to  settle  down  at  home,  or  if  from  any 
other  cause  you  want  to  leave  the  service,  remember  there 
is  no  occasion  for  you  to  work  for  your  living.  I  am  a  rich 
man,  and,  thank  God,  I  do  not  owe  my  wealth  to  grinding 
the  last  penny  out  of  the  natives.  I  could  have  retired  and 
lived  more  than  comfortably  in  England  had  I  chosen  to  do 
so  when  Runjeet  Singh  died,  for  the  Old  Lion,  with  all  his 
faults,  was  the  most  liberal  of  masters  to  those  who  served 
him  well.  Since  then  I  have,  of  course,  largely  increased  my 
means.  I  had  but  to  pay  a  fixed  sum  annually  to  Lahore, 
and  the  revenue  of  the  district  has  multiplied  itself  by  ten 
since  I  took  charge  of  it.  I  could,  therefore,  give  you  an 
income  sufficient  to  keep  you  comfortably  at  home  during  my 
lifetime,  and  it  will,  of  course,  all  come  to  you  at  my  death. 
Still,  much  as  I  should  like  to  have  you  with  me,  I  think  that, 
at  any  rate,  it  would  be  better  for  you  to  remain  in  the  ser- 
vice of  the  Company  for  some  years.  It  is  a  bad  thing  for 
any  man  to  have  nothing  to  do,  and  there  is  no  better  train- 
ing than  that  afforded  by  the  civil  service  of  the  Company." 
"Thank  you  very  much,  uncle.  I  like  the  service  greatly, 
so  far  as  I  have  seen  of  it;  and  I  should  certainly  wish  to 
remain  in  it.  Even  if  I  did  not  like  India,  I  should  do  so. 
I  think  that  a  man  with  health  and  strength  ought  to  have  a 
career,  and  not  to  owe  everything  to  another,  however  close 
a  relation  he  may  be.  I  certainly  hope  to  be  appointed  to 
the  Punjaub,  and  I  should  think  there  would  always  be  a 
spice  of  excitement  here.  There  are  sure  to  be  constant 
troubles  with  the  Afghans  and  hill  tribes  all  round  it.  I  have 
been  awfully  lucky  in  getting  noticed  so  young,  and  so  gain- 
ing at  least  eight  or  ten  years'  start  of  fresh  comers  of  my  own 
age  from  England;  and  I  feel,  above  all  things,  how  indebted 
to  you  I  am  for  this." 


RETIRED  371 

"You  are  indebted  to  me  that  you  came  out  to  India, 
Percy,  but  almost  everything  else  is  due  to  yourself.  The 
turning-point  in  your  career  was  when  you  sat  down  on  board 
ship  to  take  your  first  lesson  in  Punjaubi.  It  was  the  stead- 
fastness with  which  you  stuck  to  your  studies  during  your 
voyage  which  won  for  you  the  liking  and  patronage  of  Mr. 
Fullarton,  and  so  enabled  you  to  take  part  in  the  Sutlej  cam- 
paign. There  you  showed  pluck  and  presence  of  mind,  and 
so  gained  the  attention  of  Sir  Henry  Hardinge  and  of  the 
commander-in-chief.  After  that  it  was  the  fact  that  you  had 
got  up  Pathan,  which  procured  for  you  your  early  appoint- 
ment and  your  nomination  to  accompany  Agnew.  Had  it  not 
been  for  that  you  would  have  been  out  of  all  this  last  busi- 
ness. I  have  done  what  little  I  could  in  the  way  of  teaching 
you  to  ride  well  and  use  your  weapons,  and  have  given  you 
the  best  advice  I  could ;  but  beyond  that  everything  has  de- 
pended on  yourself.  I  feel  proud  of  you,  lad,  very  proud  of 
you,  and  I  only  wish  Mahtab  had  been  here  to  share -my  sat- 
isfaction. She  was  as  fond  of  you,  lad,  as  if  she  had  been 
your  mother.  Life  here  has  been  altogether  different  since  I 
lost  her;  and  the  sorest  point  of  all  is  the  thought  that  the 
blow  that  struck  her  was  aimed  at  me." 

"  I  know  that  you  must  feel  that,  uncle.  I  can  quite  un- 
derstand your  wanting  to  get  away  from  here  now." 

Percy  did  not  take  the  whole  of  his  leave.  His  uncle  was 
restless  and  unsettled,  and  when,  a  week  later,  the  news  came 
of  the  annexation  of  the  Punjaub,  Percy  said: 

"Why  should  you  stop,  uncle?  The  sooner  you  are  away 
the  better,  and  I  do  not  care  to  stay  here  longer.  The  place 
is  not  the  same  as  it  was;  besides,  I  cannot  help  feeling  that 
just  at  the  present  time  it  would  be  better  for  me  to  be  at 
head-quarters.  There  is  nothing  like  being  on  the  spot  when 
changes  are  being  made." 

"  I  think  you  are  right  there,  lad.  I  have  been  telling  my 
officers  what  you  said  about  trying  to  get  them  into  the  Com- 


372  THROUGH   THE    SIKH    WAR 

pany's  employment,  and  all  have  expressed  their  willingness 
to  remain  in  the  district  and  hold  themelves  in  readiness  to 
join  should  they  receive  a  message  from  you.  I  have  but 
eight  hundred  men  left  now,  and  have  given  it  to  be  under- 
stood that  I  shall  give  them  fifty  rupees  each  when  they  are 
disbanded,  and  a  grant  of  land  large  enough  to  keep  them. 
I  have  no  doubt  the  grant  will  be  confirmed,  as  the  authori-1 
ties  will  be  glad  enough  to  see  a  body  of  men,  who  might  be 
troublesome  if  turned  adrift,  settle  down  as  cultivators,  so 
adding  to  the  revenue.  Well,  there  is  nothing  to  stay  for.  I 
will  put  it  in  orders  this  evening,  that  as  the  whole  country 
has  now  been  taken  over  by  the  British  government,  the 
force  will  be  disbanded  to-morrow." 

The  next  day  the  troops  paraded  for  the  last  time.  The 
colonel  made  them  a  little  speech,  thanking  them  for  the 
fidelity  they  had  shown,  and  expressing  his  deep  regret  at 
leaving  them.  He  told  them  that  if  a  force  should  be  raised 
by  the  British  for  service  on  the  frontier,  his  nephew  would 
endeavour  to  procure  enrolment  in  its  ranks  for  such  of  them 
as  desired  it;  that  he  had  set  aside  a  tract  of  land  for  them, 
and  that  Nand  Chund  had  his  authority  to  divide  it  fairly 
among  them;  and  that  he  himself,  as  a  token  of  his  apprecia- 
tion of  their  faithful  services,  had  directed  fifty  rupees  to  be 
give,n  to  each  man  in  addition  to  the  pay  due  to  him,  and 
that  his  vakeel  was  writing  for  each  a  paper  testifying  to  his 
services,  which  he  himself  would  sign,  and  which  they  would 
find  useful  in  their  dealings  with  British  officials. 

When  he  had  finished  the  men  broke  their  ranks  and 
crowded  round  him,  tears  flowing  down  most  of  their  faces, 
calling  down  blessings  upon  him,  and  pouring  out  their  regret 

leaving  the  service  of  so  good  and  kind  a  master.  It  was 
with  some  difficulty  that  the  colonel,  who  was  himself  deeply 
affected,  extricated  himself  from  them  and  returned  to  his 
residence.  The  next  morning  he  and  Percy  started.  The 
colonel  had  made  a  very  handsome  present  to  Bhop  Lai  and 


RETIRED  373 

Akram  Chunder,  and  they  of  course  accompanied  them;  but 
in  addition  the  whole  of  the  cavalry  mounted  and  formed  a 
voluntary  escort  to  them  as  far  as  Rawal  Pindee. 

Travelling  quietly  they  reached  head-quarters  on  the  day 
when  the  proclamation  was  read  to  the  troops,  amid  the  boom- 
ing of  cannon,  announcing  to  the  Punjaub  that  it  was  now  an 
integral  portion  of  British  India.  Percy  introduced  his  uncle 
to  Mr.  Fullarton,  and  the  latter  took  him  to  Sir  Henry  Law- 
rence, with  whom,  during  a  stay  of  a  week  in  the  British 
camp,  he  had  several  long  conversations,  the  chief-commis- 
sioner being  desirous  of  ascertaining  the  views  of  one  of  such 
long  experience  in  the  country. 

Colonel  Groves  was  strongly  of  opinion  that  henceforth 
there  would  be  no  more  trouble  in  the  Punjaub.  "The  Sikh 
power  is  altogether  broken,"  he  said;  "the  former  danger  to 
India  existed  in  the  fact  that  hitherto  they  had  been  so  suc- 
cessful in  war  that  they  had  come  to  consider  themselves 
almost  invincible,  and  that  the  great  army  Runjeet  had  got 
together  was  demoralized  by  inactivity,  and  each  man  thirsted 
for  an  opportunity  to  distinguish  himself,  and  dreamt  of  a 
share  in  the  plunder  of  India.  The  population  in  general 
were,  in  his  opinion,  peace-loving  and  industrious;  they  had 
suffered  terribly  under  the  exactions  of  the  grasping  sirdars, 
who  amassed  fortunes  out  of  their  toil,  and  of  the  tax- 
gatherers,  who  had  to  collect  vast  sums  for  the  maintenance 
of  the  army.  That  army  had  ceased  to  exist — Gujerat  and 
ChiHianwalla  had  accounted  for  the  greater  part  of  those  who 
had  escaped  Ferozeshah  and  Sobraon.  I  believe,"  he  said, 
"that  in  the  course  of  a  generation  there  will  be  no  more 
orderly  or  loyal  province  than  the  Punjaub.  There  will  be 
always  a  certain  number  of  restless  and  adventurous  spirits, 
but  for  these  there  will  in  time,  I  presume,  be  an  opening  in 
the  regiments  which,  when  you  feel  that  you  can  trust  them, 
will  be  raised  here  as  in  other  parts  of  India.  There  is  no 
finer  fighting  material  to  be  found  than  among  the  Sikhs,  and 


374  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

the  fidelity  with  which  they  have  fought  to  the  last  for  their 
country  is  an  earnest  of  that  which  they  will  show  to  our 
colours  when  they  once  take  a  pride  in  them." 

He  then  instanced  the  conduct  of  his  own  men,  who  had 
proved  faithful  to  him  throughout,  and  had  fought  as  bravely 
against  the  Sikh  forces  as  they  had  formerly  done  under  the 
Sikh  flag.  "They  were  for  the  most  part,"  he  said,  "men  of 
hill  tribes,  and  Pathan  rather  than  Sikh  by  blood,  and  should 
you  be  raising  a  force  for  the  defence  of  the  frontier  against 
Afghans  or  hill  men,  you  would  find  them  admirably  suited  to 
the  service.  They  are  already  well  drilled  and  accustomed  to 
discipline,  and  I  promised  them,  when  I  disbanded  them  the 
other  day,  that  I  would  speak  to  you  in  their  favour,  and  would 
guarantee  their  fidelity  should  they  be  admitted  into  the 
Company's  service." 

"I  will  think  the  matter  over,"  Sir  Henry  Lawrence  said; 
"a  force  of  that  kind,  if  it  could  be  relied  upon,  would  be  of 
immense  service." 

"  Well,  Sir  Henry,  there  is  one  ready  at  hand.  If  I  might 
venture  to  suggest,  I  should  say,  if  my  nephew  happens  to 
have  an  appointment  in  the  Punjaub,  it  would  be  useful  he 
should  go  for  a  week  or  two  to  the  district  with  the  officer 
charged  to  raise  the  force;  in  a  few  days  he  would  produce  a 
squadron  two  hundred  strong  of  well-drilled  cavalry,  and  four 
or  five  hundred  infantry,  with  a  complement  of  native  officers 
thoroughly  up  to  their  work." 

"  Your  nephew  will  certainly  have  an  appointment  in  the 
Punjaub,  Colonel  Groves.  He  has  proved  himself  a  most 
efficient  and  zealous  officer,  and  his  knowledge  of  Punjaubi 
and  Pathan,  and  of  the  country,  would  be  thrown  away  in  any 
other  province.  I  had  his  early  record  in  my  hands  when  I 
was  Resident  at  Lahore.  Major  Edwardes  has  written  very 
strongly  of  the  valuable  assistance  Mr.  Groves  rendered  him, 
and  he  has  been  very  useful  during  the  late  campaign.  I  can 
promise  you  that  his  appointment  will  show  that  his  services 


RETIRED  375 

have  been  thoroughly  appreciated.  I  consider  him  an  exceed- 
ingly promising  young  officer,  and  shall  be  glad  to  have  an 
assistant  on  whom  I  can  so  thoroughly  rely  in  any  emer- 
gency." 

"There  is  one  thing  I  want  to  say  to  you,  sir,  and  that  is, 
that,  when  I  disbanded  my  regiments,  I  gave  to  each  man  a 
grant  of  an  acre  or  two  of  land  in  a  valley  so  far  untilled,  but 
good  land,  and  capable  of  irrigation.  I  had  previously  planted 
a  thousand  of  them  in  two  similar  colonies,  both  of  which  are 
doing  well.  I  hope  that  the  grants  may  be  confirmed." 

"That  they  certainly  would  in  any  case,  Colonel  Groves;  it 
is  a  great  thing  to  have  so  many  men,  who  might  otherwise  be 
troublesome,  settled  on  the  land;  but,  indeed,  as  your  grants 
were  made  previous  to  the  formal  annexation,  they  would  in 
any  case  remain  good." 

At  the  end  of  the  week  Colonel  Groves  left  the  camp  and 
took  a  boat  to  go  down  the  Indus.  The  short  stay  among  his 
countrymen,  from  whom  he  had  been  for  many  years  separated, 
had  done  him  good,  and  dispelled  the  melancholy  thoughts 
with  which  he  had  ridden  down  from  the  fortress,  which  had 
been  for  some  twelve  years  his  home.  He  had  met  with  great 
hospitality  during  his  stay  in  camp,  for  all  were  interested  in 
the  talk  and  adventures  of  one  who  had  been  among  the  best 
known  of  Runjeet  Singh's  officers,  and  his  hearty  and  genial 
manner  had  won  for  him  the  liking  of  all  who  met  him. 

Ten  days  later  Percy,  who  was  getting  somewhat  tired  of 
idleness,  received  a  message  saying  that  he  was  to  appear 
before  the  commissioners  on  the  following  day.  Sir  Henry, 
as  president,  addressed  him  when  he  appeared. 

"  Mr.  Groves,  I  am  happy  to  say  that  my  brother  and  Mr. 
Mansell  thoroughly  agree  with  me  that  at  the  present  moment 
experience  rather  than  age  must  guide  us  in  the  distribution 
of  our  appointments.  Although  you  have  been  but  a  short 
time  in  the  Company's  service,  you  have  a  wide  experience 
in  the  country,  and  your  knowledge  of  its  languages  is  invalu- 


37G  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

able  at  the  present  juncture.  We  feel  that  you  are  naturally 
specially  acquainted  with  the  wants  and  necessities  of  that 
portion  of  the  country  in  which  you  have  lived  for  upwards  of 
two  years,  and  have  therefore  determined  to  appoint  you  to  the 
charge  of  the  strip  of  country  lying  north  of  Dhangah  and 
running  along  by  the  side  of  the  Jhelum.  It  will  be  about 
twenty  miles  wide,  and  will  extend  to  the  end  of  the  narrow 
projection  of  country  running  up  into  Cashmere.  The  line 
will  run  to  the  east  of  Rawal  Pindee,  and  will  include  all  the 
hill  country,  and  will  touch  Torbeylah  on  the  eastern  branch 
of  the  Indus.  It  will  therefore  be  about  a  hundred  and  twenty 
miles  long,  and  will  of  course  include  your  uncle's  former 
district.  Your  appointment  will  be  that  of  a  deputy-commis- 
sioner. It  will  be  a  sub-district,  either  of  the  district  of 
Rawal  Pindee  or  of  Peshawur;  that  is  not  settled  yet,  but  at 
any  rate  you  will  communicate  direct  with  me.  It  is  an 
important  appointment  for  so  young  a  civil  servant,  but  I  am 
sure  that  you  will  justify  our  choice.  I  congratulate  you,  Mr. 
Groves,  upon  having  worthily  earned  an  appointment  such 
as  this.  You  will  start  within  two  days  for  your  post,  and  we 
think  that  it  will  be  advantageous  for  you  to  make  Djarma  your 
head-quarters;  there  are,  of  course,  several  much  more  impor- 
tant places  in  the  district;  but  in  the  first  place  it  is,  I  believe, 
strongly  fortified,  it  is  distant  about  midway  between  the 
northern  and  southern  points,  and  it  possesses  the  advantage 
that  in  case  of  need  you  might  collect  a  force  from  among  the 
men  who  served  under  your  uncle,  and  who  are  personally 
known  to  you.  Lieutenant  Purchas  will  accompany  you;  he 
is  commissioned  to  raise  a  police  force  of  a  hundred  mounted 
men;  he  will  be  stationed  at  Djarma,  and  will,  of  course,  be 
subject  to  your  orders,  and  responsible  for  the  maintenance  of 
order  in  the  district.  We  have  also  decided  upon  raising  a 
frontier  force,  and  shall,  as  a  beginning,  raise  two  troops  of 
cavalry  and  six  companies  of  infantry.  Major  Mellish,  who 
will  have  the  command,  will  follow  you  to  Djarma  in  a  few 


. 

RETIRED  377 

days,  and  I  shall  be  obliged  if  you  will  assist  him  in  raising 
half  that  number  in  your  neighbourhood.  No  doubt  the  force 
will  be  considerably  increased  later;  at  present  it  is  but  an 
experiment,  and  while  it  is  desirable  that  the  corps  should 
start  with  a  number  of  trained  men,  we  have  decided  that  it 
would  be  better  to  have  an  admixture  of  recruits  from  Pathan 
tribes  on  the  other  side  of  the  Indus,  both  because  they  will 
know  the  country  there,  and  because  it  is  undesirable  that  the 
whole  force  should  be  composed  of  men  acquainted  with  each 
other." 

Percy  expressed  his  thanks  to  the  commissioners  for  the 
honour  they  had  done  him  in  the  appointment,  and  especially 
for  having  selected  him  to  the  post  he  should  have  preferred 
to  all  others.  "I  can  answer,  sir,"  he  said,  "that  should  any 
emergency  ever  occur,  I  could  in  the  course  of  a  couple  of 
days  raise  a  thousand  men  for  any  service  required." 

Ten  years  later  Percy  was  able  to  fulfil  the  promise.  He 
had  three  years  before  been  removed  to  a  more  important 
appointment,  that  of  the  district  between  the  Jhelum  and 
Chenab  rivers,  when  the  news  of  the  outbreak  of  the  mutiny 
sent  a  thrill  through  India,  and  it  was  evident  that  it  would 
extend  over  the  whole  of  the  Bengal  army.  He  received  a 
message  from  Mr.  Montgomery,  commissioner  at  Lahore — 
Sir  John  Lawrence,  who  had  succeeded  his  brother  as  chief- 
commissioner  of  the  Punjaub,  being  at  the  time  at  Rawal 
Pindee — saying,  "Come  to  me  at  once."  Ten  minutes  later 
he  was  on  horseback,  and,  accompanied  by  his  two  faithful 
servants,  rode  to  Lahore,  and  on  his  arrival  was  at  once 
received  by  the  commissioner. 

"Mr.  Groves,"  he  said,  "I  fear  there  is  no  doubt  that  the 
sepoys  throughout  the  Punjaub  will  go  with  the  rest.  We 
have  a  few  days'  respite,  but  I  fear  that  it  is  certain  they  will 
rise.  They  must  be  disarmed  if  possible,  crushed  if  neces- 
sary. I  think  that  the  Sikhs  as  a  whole  will  be  true  to  us. 
They  have  experienced  ten  years  of  good  government,  and  I 


378  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

believe  they  appreciate  it.  If  they  are  faithful,  we  may  not 
only  hold  this  province,  but  help  the  north-west;  if  they  are 
against  us,  India  is  lost  for  a  time.  My  intention  is,  as  soon 
as  the  sepoys  have  been  dealt  with,  to  raise  regiments  among 
the  Sikhs,  and  march  them  south.  What  do  you  think?  " 

"  It  will  depend  a  great  deal  on  their  chiefs,  sir;  if  they  are 
faithful,  I  believe  the  people  in  general  will  at  any  rate  not 
take  part  against  us." 

"  I  have  received  assurances  of  fidelity  from  the  Rajah  of 
Putiala  and  many  others;  some  have  offered  to  place  their 
troops  at  our  disposal,  others  not  only  troops  but  money." 

"Then  I  have  no  doubt  of  the  population,  sir;  they  have 
always  looked  to  their  chiefs,  and  if  they  are  staunch  the  peo- 
ple will  follow  their  lead." 

"Why  I  have  specially  sent  for  you  is  this,  Mr.  Groves. 
You  know  your  old  district  thoroughly,  and  have  personal 
influence  there ;  would  you  undertake  to  raise  a  force  at  once, 
whom  you  could  trust  to  fight  against  the  sepoys?  There  are 
the  garrisons  at  Peshawur,  Nowshera,  Rawal  Pindee,  and 
other  places." 

"I  think  I  can  undertake  that,  sir." 

"Then,  in  heaven's  name,  start  at  once.  Take  a  fresh 
horse  from  my  stable,  get  remounts  wherever  you  can,  and 
ride  as  if  for  your  life.  The  troops  at  Meerut  and  Delhi  have 
both  risen  and  massacred  the  officers  and  all  the  Europeans; 
and  although  it  may  be  a  few  days  before  the  news  is  generally 
known,  you  are  aware  how  strangely  fast  news  travels  in  India, 
and  assuredly  this  will  be  the  signal  for  the  rising  of  the 
sepoys  everywhere.  I  hope  to  be  able  to  deal  with  those  here 
and  at  Mean  Meer." 

Feeling  half-stupefied  at  the  intelligence  of  the  risings  at 
Meerut  and  Delhi,  Percy  hurried  off. 

"I  have  to  ride  with  all  speed  to  Djarma,"  he  said  to  his 
followers;  "it  is  a  matter  of  life  and  death,  and  I  have  not  a 
moment  to  lose.  The  commissioner  has  ordered  one  of  his 


RETIRED  379 

own  horses  to  be  brought  round  for  me  to  start  with,  and  I 
shall  change  as  often  as  I  can  on  the  road.  Do  you  follow 
on  as  quickly  as  you  can." 

Five  minutes  later  he  dashed  out  through  the  northern  gate 
of  Lahore.  He  had  already  performed  a  long  and  rapid  ride, 
and  had  nearly  two  hundred  miles  before  him;  but  he  made 
the  journey  without  rest,  save  to  eat  something  whenever  a 
fresh  horse  was  being  procured  for  him,  and  in  twenty  hours 
from  his  leaving  Lahore  he  rode  into  Djarma.  The  force 
there  had,  he  heard,  been  summoned  six  hours  previously  by 
a  messenger  from  Sir  John  Lawrence  to  join  him  instantly  at 
Rawal  Pindee.  In  half  an  hour  after  his  arrival  he  had  de- 
spatched a  dozen  messengers  to  the  valleys  where  his  uncle's 
men  had  been  settled;  then  he  threw  himself  down  on  a 
couch,  and  ordered  that  he  should  not  be  disturbed  for  four 
hours. 

At  the  end  of  that  time  he  was  aroused,  and  going  out 
found  that  some  four  hundred  men  from  the  valley  below  had 
already  come  in;  the  greater  portion  were  old  soldiers,  but 
some  had  brought  their  sons  in  with  them,  and  all  were 
equally  ready  to  serve.  Three  hours  more,  and  the  force  had 
swelled  to  twelve  hundred  men,  and  included  many  of  the 
colonel's  old  officers,  among  them  Nand  Chund,  who  had 
saved  money  and  settled  down  quietly  after  the  troops  had 
been  disbanded.  The  old  soldiers  had  all  brought  their  arms 
with  them,  and  the  new  recruits  had  also  for  the  most  part 
arms  of  some  kind;  others  were  found,  and  distributed  among 
them.  The  old  officers  naturally  fell  into  their  positions, 
and  the  vacancies  were  filled  up  by  men  who  had  been  under- 
officers. 

There  were  two  hundred  cavalry-men  among  them,  but  of 
these  not  more  than  half  had  horses  of  any  kind;  but  messen- 
gers had  also  been  sent  off  to  many  of  the  land-owners  in  that 
part  of  the  district,  begging  them  to  lend  horses  for  the  ser- 
vice of  the  government,  and  assuring  them  of  payment  for 


V 


380  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

them  on  a  fair  scale  should  they  not  be  returned ;  and  a  suffi- 
cient number  for  the  unmounted  men  were  now  forthcoming. 
Eight  hours  after  his  arrival  at  Djarma,  Percy  rode  out  at  the 
head  of  two  hundred  cavalry  and  one  thousand  infantry. 
Nand  Chund  was  left  behind,  with  directions  to  raise  instantly 
another  regiment  of  infantry  and  as  many  horsemen  as  he 
could  engage  in  the  whole  district,  and  to  join  him  as  speed- 
ily as  possible. 

"I  could  raise  five  regiments  if  it  were  necessary,"  Nand 
Chund  said;  "when  the  people  know  that  you  are  to  be  their 
leader,  every  man  who  can  bear  arms  will  be  ready  to  follow 
you." 

"A  regiment  will  be  enough  for  the  present,  Nand  Chund. 
No  one  can  say  how  many  will  be  required  afterwards. 
Choose  young  and  active  men;  we  shall  have  long  marches 
and  much  to  go  through.  You  can  say  that  I  have  no  doubt 
that  all  who  do  faithful  duty  will  be  permanently  retained  in 
the  service  if  they  choose." 

Percy  did  not  go  to  Rawal  Pindee,  for  he  knew  that  there 
were  European  troops  there,  and  the  place  was  safe,  and  he 
feared  that  his  force  might  be  detained  there.  His  corps 
made  a  tremendous  day's  march,  and  placed  themselves  on 
the  main  northern  road,  where,  three  hours  later,  the  sepoys 
came  along  from  the  Attock  and  Nusserabad.  Warned  of 
their  approach  by  the  clouds  of  dust,  Percy  placed  his  troops 
in  a  grove,  and  when  they  came  along,  with  drums  beating 
and  colours  flying,  poured  in  a  volley  and  attacked  them. 
Taken  by  surprise,  great  numbers  were  killed,  and  the  rest 
fled  and  were  pursued  by  him  at  the  head  of  the  cavalry,  and 
very  few  of  them  succeeded  in  effecting  their  escape. 

The  next  morning  Percy  marched  his  infantry  as  far  as 
Attock,  and  leaving  them  there  to  prevent  the  passage  of  any 
mutineers,  pushed  forward  with  the  cavalry  to  Peshawur. 
Here  he  aided  the  irregular  cavalry  under  Colonel  Nicholson 
in  cutting  up  the  sepoys  who  had  mutinied  at  the  frontier  sta- 


RETIRED  381 

tions.  For  the  next  fortnight  he  scoured  the  northern  district, 
dispersing  bodies  of  the  mutineers  and  keeping  order.  His 
infantry  he  had  sent  down  to  Lahore  to  be  employed  as  re- 
quired. At  the  end  of  that  time  he  received  an  order  to 
report  himself  there  with  his  cavalry. 

"You  have  been  doing  good  service  again,  Mr.  Groves," 
Sir  John  Lawrence  said;  "the  prompt  punishment  you  in- 
flicted on  the  mutineers  has  had  an  excellent  effect  in  the 
north.  But  you  are  wanted  back  in  your  district;  we  must 
carry  on  things  as  before,  for  this  will  impress  the  natives 
more  with  the  fact  that  we  have  no  fear  and  anxiety  about 
the  future,  than  if  we  were  ourselves  to  go  south.  A  tranquil 
and  assured  front,  a  quiet  continuance  in  our  usual  routine 
work,  will  impress  them  more  than  anything.  Now,  as  to 
these  men  you  have  raised :  first  as  to  the  cavalry,  I  will  mus- 
ter them  into  the  service  if  they  are  willing,  and  the  same 
thing  with  the  infantry.  I  am  raising  regiments  here  as  fast 
as  I  can,  in  order  to  enable  the  commander-in-chief  to  take 
the  offensive.  Hitherto  the  population  in  general  seems  to 
have  stood  aloof,  and  it  is  most  desirable  to  show  them  that 
we  are  confident.  Do  you  think  your  men  will  all  engage?  " 

"That  I  cannot  say,  sir;  they  all  joined  me  at  once  from 
their  affection  for  my  uncle  and  from  their  personal  knowl- 
edge of  myself.  Some  of  them  are  well-to-do  men;  a  good 
many  of  them  are  getting  past  the  age  for  soldiering.  They 
would  all  be  willing,  I  have  no  doubt,  to  serve  here  in  the 
Punjaub,  but  many  would  not  care  to  enlist  for  regular  service. 
Most  of  the  younger  men  would,  of  course,  be  delighted  to 
do  so." 

Eventually  three  strong  companies  were  raised  from  the 
infantry  and  a  troop  of  horse  from  the  cavalry.  These  were 
enrolled  in  the  Company's  service.  Both  were  at  once 
furnished  with  officers  belonging  to  the  sepoy  regiments  that 
had  mutinied,  and  marched  away  to  join  the  force  assembling 
for  an  advance  against  Delhi.  Another  troop  of  a  hundred 


\J- 
V 

382  THROUGH   THE   SIKH   WAR 

men,  willing  to  serve  for  a  year,  was  officered  and  sent  up  to 
Djarma,  together  with  two  hundred  infantry,  to  be  in  readi- 
ness to  put  down  any  trouble  that  might  arise  with  the  hill 
tribes.  The  rest  received  two  months'  pay  and  returned  to 
their  homes,  with  the  understanding  that  they  would,  if  called 
upon  to  do  so,  rejoin  the  ranks. 

The  month  that  followed  was  full  of  anxiety  to  all.  Until 
Delhi  fell  the  strain  was  very  great,  for  although  the  Punjaub 
was  quiet  and  apparently  loyal,  the  eyes  of  every  native  in 
India  were  fixed  upon  the  desperate  struggle  round  the  city 
which  had  for  so  long  been  the  seat  of  empire,  and  it  was  not 
until  the  British  flag  again  floated  over  the  blood-stained  city, 
that  India  recognized  that  the  British  would  assuredly  emerge 
victorious  from  the  struggle  with  the  great  army  it  had  raised 
and  disciplined. 

When  at  length  the  strength  of  the  mutiny  was  crushed  by 
the  final  capture  of  Lucknow,  and  there  remained  but  the  work 
of  pursuit  and  punishment  to  be  carried  out,  Percy  Groves 
took  his  leave  and  went  home.  He  had  been  fifteen  years 
absent,  and  was  now  thirty.  He  did  not  go  alone,  for  he  took 
with  him  a  wife  and  two  children,  having  five  years  before 
married  the  sister  of  a  young  civilian  in  his  own  district. 
She  had  many  relatives  in  the  service,  and  some  of  these  had 
been  among  the  early  victims  of  the  mutiny,  and  a  married 
sister  had  been  among  those  so  long  besieged  in  Lucknow. 
The  anxiety  had  told  so  much  upon  his  wife,  that  Percy  was 
strongly  advised  to  take  her  to  England  directly  he  could  get 
away  from  his  work,  and  as  soon  as  he  felt  that  he  could  be 
spared  he  sent  in  his  application,  which  was  at  once  acceded 
to.  His  name  had  been  included  by  Sir  John  Lawrence  in 
the  lists  of  those  to  whose  efforts  it  was  chiefly  due  that  the 
Punjaub  had  been  saved,  and  when  the  list  of  honours  came 
out  his  name  was  included  in  those  on  whom  the  honour  of 
C.B.  had  been  bestowed. 

Before  leaving  he  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  his  two 


RETIRED  383 

faithful  followers  settled  down  near  each  other.  He  had  pur- 
chased for  them  of  a  sirdar,  who  had  impoverished  himself  by 
his  extravagance,  the  rights  over  several  villages,  and  although 
they  lamented  Percy's  departure  deeply,  they  were  both  of  an 
age  when  men  view  with  satisfaction  the  prospect  of  a  life  of 
ease  and  comfort. 

He  embarked  this  time  at  Bombay,  and  returned  via  Egypt. 
He  was  received  with  delight  by  his  uncle,  who  had  estab- 
lished himself  at  Southsea,  and  who  looked,  Percy  thought, 
but  little  older  than  when  he  had  seen  him  last.  When  the 
end  of  his  two  years'  leave  of  absence  was  approaching,  his 
uncle  for  the  first  time  asked  him  whether  he  meant  to  go 
back. 

"  I  can  only  say,  Percy,  that  I  shall  consider  you  a  down- 
right fool  if  you  do.  If  you  had  kept  yourself  single,  it  would 
be  a  different  thing;  and  if  you  had  an  ambition  to  become 
some  day  one  of  the  top-sawyers  in  the  service,  a  chief- 
commissioner,  and  all  that,  there  is  no  reason  that  I  know  of, 
except  that  I  want  you  here,  why  you  should  not  stick  to  it  to 
the  end  of  your  life.  Now  it  is  altogether  different.  You 
know  the  doctor  has  advised  that  though  Annie  is  perfectly 
well,  she  should  not  return  to  India.  Even  if  she  did,  you 
would  not  want  to  take  these  three  little  children  out  with  you, 
and  she  would  not  like  to  go  without  them.  That  breaking  up 
of  families  is  the  great  drawback  to  the  Indian  service.  Of 
course,  in  many  cases  men  must  put  up  with  it,  because  they 
cannot  afford  to  leave  till  they  have  served  long  enough  to  get 
their  full  pension.  That  is  not  so  in  your  case.  You  will  get 
a  fair  pension,  of  course,  because  you  have  held  much  more 
important  appointments  than  often  fall  to  the  lot  of  men  of 
your  standing;  then,  too,  you  were  seriously  wounded  at 
Chillianwalla.  You  have  been  specially  reported,  and  have 
been  made  a  C.B.,  all  of  which  will  count  in  the  way  of 
pension.  However,  fortunately  that  makes  very  little  differ- 
ence to  you;  as  I  told  you  twelve  years  ago  I  have  an  ample 


384  THROUGH  THE   SIKH   WAR 

fortune  for  us  both,  and  I  want  you  at  home.  It  has  been  dull 
work  for  me  since  I  came  back,  without  anyone  to  care  for 
here.  I  am  nearly  sixty  now,  and  I  want  a  comfortable  home 
for  the  remainder  of  my  life,  and  if  you  go  away  again  I  shall 
be  doing  something  rash,  marrying  again,  or  something  of 
that  sort.  Of  course,  it  is  for  you  to  choose;  but  if  you  go 
back  to  India  alone,  when  you  can  live  here  with  your  wife 
and  children,  I  shall  consider  you  to  be  a  greater  fool  than  I 
took  you  to  be." 

"Well,  you  need  not  consider  that,  uncle,"  Percy  laughed. 
"I  have  been  thinking  it  over  myself,  and  had  pretty  well 
come  to  the  conclusion  to  retire.  I  have  no  particular  ambi- 
tion to  become  a  lieutenant-governor,  or  even  a  governor; 
certainly  none  to  be  working  out  there  alone,  with  Annie  and 
the  children  in  England;  and  the  thought  that  you  would  like 
me  at  home  has  had  its  full  share  in  deciding  me.  To  tell 
you  the  truth,  I  have  already  sent  in  my  request  to  be  allowed 
to  retire,  but  I  had  intended  to  say  nothing  about  it  until  I 
could  surprise  you  with  the  news  that  it  was  all  settled.  I 
used  to  think  that,  did  I  return,  I  should  have  no  one  I  knew 
in  England  except  you;  but  Annie's  friends  and  relations,  and 
there  are  any  number  of  them,  have  naturally  become  mine, 
and  I  am  now  thoroughly  equipped  that  way." 

"I  am  glad  to  hear  it,  Percy;  heartily  glad.  I  reckoned 
on  your  good  sense  as  well  as  upon  your  affection  for  me,  and 
I  am  indeed  glad  that  it  is  settled.  I  have  had  two  or  three 
talks  on  the  subject  with  Annie.  She  says  she  hoped  and 
thought  you  would  retire,  but  that  she  would  not  say  a  word  to 
influence  you  one  way  or  the  other.  You  are  very  fortunate 
in  your  wife,  lad." 

"  I  have  been  very  fortunate  all  round,  uncle ;  no  man  has 
more  reason  for  being  thankful  and  grateful  than  I  have,  to 
God  in  the  first  place  for  all  the  blessings  I  have  received, 
and  next  to  him  to  you." 

"Tut,  tut,  Percy,  you  have  brought  as  much  pleasure  into 


RETIRED  385 

my  life  as  I  have  into  yours.  Now,  lad,  you  must  consult  your 
wife,  and  look  about  and  decide  where  you  would  like  to 
establish  yourself.  We  will  have  a  house  in  London,  which  I 
shall  call  mine,  and  you  shall  have  a  place  in  the  country, 
with  an  estate  big  enough  to  be  an  amusement  without  being 
a  trouble;  or  if  you  have  no  fancy  for  an  estate,  we  will  buy 
a  place  here,  or  anywhere  else  you  and  your  wife  wish  to 
fix  on." 

"Thank  you,  uncle;  we  shall  have  plenty  of  time  to  talk 
that  over.  My  present  idea  is  that  I  have  no  desire  whatever 
to  become  the  possessor  of  an  estate.  The  life  is  vastly  more 
cheerful  in  a  town  like  this,  where  we  have  any  number  of 
acquaintances,  military  and  Indian,  a  good  club,  and  some- 
thing always  going  on,  than  it  would  be  in  the  country,  where, 
as  I  found  while  staying  with  some  of  Annie's  relations,  eight 
miles  is  considered  a  reasonable  drive  to  a  dinner  party." 

And  so,  a  month  later,  Percy  Groves  retired  from  the  ser- 
vice. His  wife,  having  so  many  friends  in  the  army,  and 
having  been  brought  up  among  military  men,  cordially  agreed 
with  him  in  preferring  life  near  a  large  garrison  town  like 
Portsmouth  to  settling  on  an  estate  in  the  country,  and  three 
months  later  they  were  established  in  a  large  and  comfortable 
house  standing  in  its  own  grounds  at  Southsea.  Colonel  Groves 
proposed  to  Percy  to  go  into  parliament,  and  to  take  a  promi- 
nent part  in  questions  connected  with  India.  Percy  would 
not  listen  to  the  proposal  ^his  Indian  duties  had,  however, 
made  him  an  adept  with  his  pen;  and  beginning  by  writing 
occasional  articles  upon  Indian  subjects  in  which  he  felt  a 
special  interest,  he  became  a  regular  contributor  to  one  or 
two  of  the  leading  reviews,  while  his  articles  on  Indian  topics 
in  the  Times,  signed  "P.G.,"  attracted  much  attention. 

This  work  kept  up  his  connection  with  India,  and  afforded 
just  that  amount  of  pleasant  occupation  that  is  so  necessary  to 
men  who,  having  led  a  busy  and  active  life,  have  nothing  but 
their  family  duties  and  pleasures  and  the  ordinary  routine  of 


386  THROUGH    THE    SIKH   WAR 

daily  life  to  occupy  their  minds.  Colonel  Groves  died  some 
five  years  since,  enjoying  life  to  the  last,  and  deeply  regretted 
by  his  great-nephews  and  -nieces.  Percy  Groves  is  one  of  the 
best-known  figures  at  Southsea  and  at  the  Oriental  Club,  and 
his  grandchildren  consider  it  the  greatest  of  treats  when  they 
can  persuade  him  to  tell  them  stories  of  his  experiences  and 
adventures  in  the  two  campaigns  that  resulted  in  the  Conquest 
of  the  Punjaub. 


THE   END 


"Wherever  English  is  spoken  one  imagines  that  Mr.  Henty's 
name  is  known.  One  cannot  enter  a  schoolroom  or  look  at  a 
boy's  bookshelf  without  seeing  half-a-dozen  of  his  familiar 
volumes.  Mr.  Henty  is  no  doubt  the  most  successful  writer 
for  boys,  and  the  one  to  whose  new  volumes  they  look  forward 
every  Christmas  with  most  pleasure. " — Review  of  Reviews. 


A  LIST   OF   BOOKS 
FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLE 

...  By ... 

G.  A.  HENTY 


Published  by 

CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 

J53  to  J57  Fifth  Avenue          jfc          *          New  York 

and  by 

BLACKIE  &  SON,  Limited,  GLASGOW 


THIS    YE.AR'8    BOOKS 

..  .'BY  ... 

G.    A.    HE,NTY. 


"  Among  writers  of  stories  of  adventures  for  boys  Mr.  Henty 
stands  in  the  very  first  rank." — Academy  (London). 


THE  TREASURE  OF  THE  INCAS 

A  Tale  of  Adventure  in  Peru.     With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by 
WAL  PAQET,  and  Map.    $1.20  net. 

Peru  and  the  hidden  treasures  of  her  ancient  kings  offer  Mr.  Hcnty 
a  most  fertile  field  for  a  stirring  story  of  adventure  in  his  most  engag- 
ing style.  In  an  effort  to  win  the  girl  of  his  heart,  the  hero  penetrates 
into  the  wilds  of  the  land  of  the  Incas.  Boys  who  have  learned  to 
look  for  Mr.  Henty's  books  will  follow  his  new  hero  in  his  adventurous 
and  romantic  expedition,  with  absorbing  interest.  It  is  one  of  the  most 
captivating  tales  Mr.  Henty  has  yet  written. 

WITH  KITCHENER  IN  THE  SOUDAN 

A  Story  of  Atbara  and  Omdurman.     With  10  full-page  Illustra- 
tions.   $1.20  net. 

Mr.  Henty  has  never  combined  history  and  thrilling  adventure  more 
skillfully  than  in  this  extremely  interesting  story.  It  is  not  in  boy 
nature  to  lay  it  aside  unfinished,  once  begun ;  and  finished,  the  reader 
finds  himself  in  possession,  not  only  of  the  facts  and  the  true  atmos- 
phere of  Kitchener's  famous  Soudan  campaign,  but  of  the  Gordon 
tragedy  which  preceded  it  by  so  many  years  and  of  which  it  was  the 
outcome.  « 

WITH   THE  BRITISH  LEGION 

A  Story  of  the  Carlist  Uprising  of  1836.     Illustrated.     $1.20  net. 

Arthur  Hallet,  a  young  English  boy,  finds  himself  in  difficulty  at 
home,  through  certain  harmless  school  escapades,  and  enlists  in  the 
famous  "  British  Legion,"  which  was  then  embarking  for  Spain  to  take 
part  in  the  campaign  to  repress  the  Carlist  uprising  of  1836.  Arthur 
shows  his  mettle  in^the  first  fight,  distinguishes  himself  by  daring  work 
in  carrying  an  important  dispatch  to  Madrid,  makes  a  dashing  and 
thrilling  rescue  of  the  sister  of  his  patron  and  is  rapidly  promoted  to 
the  rank  of  captain.  In  following  the  adventures  of  the  hero,  the 
reader  obtains,  as  is  usual  with  Mr.  Henty's  stories,  a  most  accurate 
and  interesting  history  of  a  picturesque  campaign. 


BOOKS  FOR    TO  UNO   PEOPLE 


STORIES    BY    Q.    A.    HENTY 

"  His  books  have  at  once  the  solidity  of  history  and  the  charm  of 
romance.  "-Journal  of  Education.      ' 


TO  HERAT   AND   CABUL 

A  Story  of  the  First  Afghan  War.     By  G.  A.  HENTY.     With 
Illustrations.      12mo,  $1.20  net. 

The  greatest  defeat  ever  experienced  by  the  British  Army  was  that 
in  the  Mountain  Passes  of  Afghanistan.  Angus  Cameron,  the  hero  of 
this  book,  having  been  captured  by  the  friendly  Afghans,  was  com- 
pelled to  be  a  witness  of  the  calamity.  His  whole  story  is  an  intensely 
interesting  one,  from  his  boyhood  in  Persia;  his  employment  under  the 
Government  at  Herat;  through  the  defense  of  that  town  against  the 
Persians;  to  Cabul,  where  he  shared  in  all  the  events  which  ended  in 
the  awful  march  through  the  Passes  from  which  but  one  man  escaped. 
Angus  is  always  at  the  point  of  danger,  and  whether  in  battle  or  in 
hazardous  expeditions  shows  how  much  a  brave  youth,  full  of 
resources,  can  do,  even  with  so  treacherous  a  foe.  His  dangers  and 
adventures  are  thrilling,  and  his  escapes  marvellous. 

WITH  ROBERTS  TO  PRETORIA 

A  Tale  of  the  South  African  War.     By  G.  A  KENTY.     With  12 
Illustrations.    $1.20  net. 

The  Boer  War  gives  Mr.  Henty  an  unexcelled  opportunity  for  a 
thrilling  story  of  present-day  Interest  which  the  author  could  not  fail  to 
take  advantage  of.  Every  boy  reader  will  find  this  account  of  the  ad- 
ventures of  the  young  hero  most  exciting,  and,  at  the  same  time  a 
wonderfully  accurate  description  of  Lord  Koberts's  campaign  to  Preto- 
ria. Boys  have  found  history  in  the  dress  Mr.  Henty  gives  it  anything 
but  dull,  and  the  present  book  is  no  exception  to  the  rule. 

AT  THE  POINT  OF  THE  BAYONET 

A  Tale  of  the  Mahratta  War.     By  G.  A.  HENTY.     Illustrated. 
12mo,  $1.20  net. 

One  hundred  years  ago  the  rule  of  the  British  in  India  was  only  partly 
established.  The  powerful  Mahrattas  were  unsubdued,  and  with  their 
skill  in  intrigue,  and  great  military  power,  they  were  exceedingly  dan- 
gerous. The  story  of  "At  the  Point  of  the  Bayonet"  begins  with 
the  attempt  to  conquer  this  powerful  people.  Harry  Lindsay,  an 
infant  when  bis  father  and  mother  were  killed,  was  saved  by  his 
Mahratta  ayah,  who  carried  him  to  her  own  people  and  brought  him 
up  as  a  native.  She  taught  him  as  best  she  could,  and,  having  told  him 
his  parentage,  sent  him  to  Bombay  to  be  educated.  At  sixteen  he  ob- 
tained a  commission  in  the  English  Army,  and  his  knowledge  of  the 
Mahratta  tongue  combined  with  his  ability  and  bravery  enabled  him  to 
render  great  service  in  the  Mahratta  War,  and  carried  him,  through 
many  frightful  perils  by  land  and  sea,  to  high  rank. 


BOOKS  FOR    YOUNG   PEOPLE 


BY  Q.  A.  HENTY 

"Mr.   Henty  might  with  entire  propriety  be  called  the  boys' Sir 
Walter  Scott  " — Philadelphia  Press. 


IN  THE   IRISH   BRIGADE 

A  Tale  of  War  in  Flanders  and  Spain.    With  12  Illustrations  by 
CHARLES  M.  SHELD  ;N.     12mo,  $1.50. 

Desmond  Kennedy  is  a  young  Irish  lad  who  left  Ireland  to  join  the 
Irish  Brigade  in  the  service  of  Louis  XIV.  of  France.  In  Paris  he  in- 
curred the  deadly  hatred  of  a  powerful  courtier  from  whom  he  had 
rescued  a  young  girl  who  had  been  kidnapped,  and  his  perils  are  of  ab- 
sorbing interest.  Captured  in  an  attempted  Jacobite  invasion  of  Scot- 
land, be  escaped  in  a  most  extraordinary  manner.  As  aid-de-camp 
to  the  Duke  of  Berwick  he  experienced  thrilling  adventures  in  Flan- 
ders. Transferred  to  the  Army  in  Spain,  he  was  nearly  assassinated, but 
escaped  to  return,  when  peace  was  declared,  to  his  native  land,  having 
received  pardon  and  having  recovered  his  estates.  The  story  is  filled 
with  adventure,  and  the  interest  never  abates. 

OUT   WITH   GARIBALDI 

A   Story  of  the  Liberation  of  Italy.     By  G.  A.  HENTY.     With 
8  Illustrations  by  W.  RAINEY,  R.I.     12mo,  $1.50. 

Garibaldi  himself  is  the  central  figure  of  this  brilliant  story,  and  the 
little-known  history  of  the  struggle  for  Italian  freedom  is  told  here  in 
the  most  thrilling  way.  From  the  time  the  hero,  a  young  lad,  son  of 
an  English  father  and  an  Italian  mother,  joins  Garibaldi's  band  of 
1,000  men  in  the  first  descent  upon  Sicily,  which  was  garrisoned  by  one 
of  the  large  Neapolitan  armies,  until  the  end,  when  all  those  armies 
are  beaten,  and  the  two  Sicilys  are  conquered,  we  follow  with  the 
keenest  interest  the  exciting  adventures  of  the  lad  in  scouting,  in 
battle,  and  in  freeing  those  in  prison  for  liberty's  sake. 

WITH   BULLER   IN  NATAL 

Or,   A  Born  Leader.     By  G.  A.  HENTY.     With  10  Illustrations 
by  W.  RAINEY.     12mo,  $1.50. 

The  breaking  out  of  the  Boer  War  compelled  Chris  King,  the  hero 
of  the  story,  to  flee  with  his  mother  from  Johannesburg  to  the  sea 
coast.  They  were  with  many  other  Uitlanders,  and  all  suffered  much 
from  the  Boers.  Reaching  a  place  of  safety  for  their  families,  Chris 
and  twenty  of  his  friends  formed  an  independent  company  of  scouts.  In 
this  service  they  were  with  Gen.  Yule  at  Glencoe,  then  in  Ladysmith, 
then  with  Buller.  In  each  place  they  had  many  thrilling  adventures. 
They  were  in  great  battles  and  in  lonely  fights  on  the  Veldt ;  were 
taken  prisoners  and  escaped;  and  they  rendered  most  valuable  service 
to  the  English  forces.  The  story  is  a  most  interesting  picture  of  the 
War  in  South  Africa, 


BOOKS   FOR    YOUNG    PEOPLE 


BY  G.  A.  HENTY 

"  Surely  Mr.  Henty  should  understand  boys'  tastes  better  than  any 
man  living." — The  Time*. 


WON   BY   THE   SWORD 

A  Tale  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War.     "With  12  Illustrations  by 
CHARLES  M.  SHELDON,  and  four  Plans.     12mo,  $1.50. 

The  scene  of  this  story  is  iaid  in  ^rance,  during  the  time  of  Richelieu, 
of  Mazarin  and  Anne  of  Austria.  The  hero,  Hector  Campbell,  is  the 
orphaned  son  of  a  Scotch  officer  in  the  French  Army.  How  he  at- 
tracted the  notice  of  Marshal  Turenne  and  of  the  Prince  of  Conde ; 
how  he  rose  to  the  rank  of  Colonel ;  how  he  finally  had  to  leave  France, 
pursued  by  the  deadly  hatred  of  the  Due  de  Beaufort — all  these  and 
much  more  the  story  tells  with  the  most  absorbing  interest. 

A   ROVING   COMMISSION 

Or,  Through  the  Black  Insurrection  at  Hayti.     With  12  Illus- 
trations by  WILLIAM  RAINEY.     12mo,  $1.50. 

This  is  one  of  the  most  brilliant  of  Mr.  Henty's  books.  A  story  of 
the  sea,  with  all  its  life  and  action,  it  is  also  full  of  thrilling  adven- 
tures on  land.  So  it  holds  the  keenest  interest  until  the  end.  The 
scene  is  a  new  one  to  Mr.  Henty's  readers,  being  laid  at  the  time  of  the 
Great  Revolt  of  the  Blacks,  by  which  Hayti  became  independent. 
Toussaint  1'Overture  appears,  and  an  admirable  picture  is  given  of  him 
and  of  his  power. 

NO   SURRENDER 

The   Story  of  the  Revolt  in  La  Vendee.     With  8  Illustrations 
by  STANLEY  L.  WOOD.     12mo,  $1.50. 

The  revolt  of  La  Vendee  against  the  French  Republic  at  the  time  of 
the  Revolution  forms  the  groundwork  of  this  absorbing  story.  Leigh 
Stansfield,  a  young  English  lad,  is  drawn  into  the  thickest  of  the  con- 
flict. Forming  a  company  of  boys  as  scouts  for  the  Vendean  Army, 
he  greatly  aids  the  peasants.  He  rescues  his  sister  from  the  guillotine, 
and  finally,  after  many  thrilling  experiences,  when  the  cause  of  La 
Vende"e  is  lost,  he  escapes  to  England. 

UNDER  WELLINGTON'S  COMMAND 

A  Tale  of  the  Peninsular  War.     With  12  Illustrations  by  WAL 
PAGET.    12mo,  $l.oO. 

The  dashing  hero  of  this  book.  Terence  O'Connor,  was  the  hero  of 
Mr.  Henty's  previous  book,  "  With  Moore  at  Corunna,"  to  which  this 
Is  really  a  sequel.  He  is  still  at  the  head  of  the  "  Minho  "  Portuguese 
regiment.  Being  detached  on  independent  and  guerilla  duty  with  his 
regiment,  he  renders  invaluable  service  in  gaining  information  and  in 
harassing  the  French.  His  command,  being  constantly  on  the  edge  of 
the  army,  is  engaged  in  frequent  skirmishes  and  some  most  important 
battles. 


BOOKS   FOR    YOUNG   PEOPLE 


BY  G.  A.  HENTY 

"  Mr.  Henty  is  the  king  of  story-tellers  for  boys." — Sword  and  Trowel* 


AT  ABOUKIR  AND  ACRE 

A  Story  of  Napoleon's  Invasion  of  Egypt.  With  8  full-page 
Illustrations  by  WILLIAM  RAINEY,  and  3  Plans.  12mo, 
$1.50. 

The  hero,  having  saved  the  life  of  the  son  of  an  Arab  chief,  is  taken 
Into  the  tribe,  has  a  part  in  the  battle  of  the  Pyramids  and  the  revolt 
at  Cairo.  He  is  an  eye-witness  of  the  famous  naval  battle  of  Aboukir, 
and  later  is  in  the  hardest  of  the  defense  of  Acre. 

BOTH  SIDES  THE  BORDER 

A  Tale  of  Hotspur  and  Glendower.  With  13  full-page  Illus- 
trations by  RALPH  PEACOCK.  12mo,  $1.50. 

This  is  a  brilliant  story  of  the  stirring  times  of  the  beginning  of  the 
"Wars  of  the  Roses,  when  the  Scotch,  under  Douglas,  and  the  Welsh, 
under  Owen  Glendower,  were  attacking  the  English.  The  hero  of  the 
book  lived  near  the  Scotch  border,  and  saw  many  a  hard  fight  there. 
Entering  the  service  of  Lord  Percy,  he  was  sent  to  Wales,  where  he 
was  knighted,  and  where  he  was  captured.  Being  released,  he  returned 
home,  and  shared  in  the  fatal  battle  of  Shrewsbury. 


WITH  FREDERICK  THE  GREAT 

A  Tale  of  the  Seve.i  Years'  War.     With  12  full-page  Illustra- 
tions.    12mo,  $1.50. 

The  hero  of  this  story  while  still  a  youth  entered  the  service  of 
Frederick  the  Great,  and  by  a  succession  of  fortunate  circumstances 
and  perilous  adventures,  rose  to  the  rank  of  colonel.  Attached  to  the 
staff  of  the  king,  he  rendered  distinguished  services  in  many  battles,  in 
one  of  which  he  saved  the  king's  life.  Twice  captured  and  imprisoned, 
he  both  times  escaped  from  the  Austrian  fortresses. 

A  MARCH  ON  LONDON 

A  Story  of  Wat  Tyler's  Rising.     With  8  full-page  Illustra- 
tions by  W.  H.  MARGETSON.     12mo,  $1.50. 

The  story  of  Wat  Tyler's  Rebellion  is  but  little  known,  but  the  hero 
of  this  story  passes  through  that  perilous  time  and  takes  part  in  the 
civil  war  in  Flanders  which  followed  soon  after.  Although  young  he 
is  thrown  into  many  exciting  and  dangerous  adventures,  through  which 
he  passes  with  great  coolness  and  much  credit. 


BOOKS   FOR    YOUNG   PEOPLE 


BY  G.  A.  HENTY 

"  No  country  nor  epoch  of  history  is  there  which  Mr.  Henty  does  not 
know,  and  what  is  really  remarkable  is  that  he  always  writes  well  and 
interestingly." — New  York  Times. 


WITH  MOORE  AT  CORUNNA 

A  Story  of  the  Peninsular  War.  With  12  full-page  Illustra- 
tions by  WAL  PAGET.  13mo,  $1.50. 

Terence  O'Connor  is  living  with  his  widowed  father,  Captain  O'Con- 
nor of  the  Mayo  Fusiliers,  with  the  regiment  at  the  time  when  the 
Peninsular  war  began.  Upon  the  regiment  being  ordered  to  Spain, 
Terence  gets  appointed  as  aid  to  one  of  the  generals  of  a  division.  By 
his  bravery  and  great  usefulness  throughout  the  war,  he  is  rewarded 
by  a  commission  as  colonel  in  the  Portuguese  army  and  there  rendered 
great  service. 

AT  AGINCOURT 

A  Tale  of  the  White  Hoods  of  Paris.  With  12  full-page 
Illustrations  by  WALTER  PAGET.  Crown  8vo,  olivine 
edges,  $1.50. 

The  story  begins  in  a  grim  feudal  castle  in  Normandie.  The  times 
were  troublous,  and  soon  the  king  compelled  Lady  Margaret  de  Villeroy 
with  her  children  to  go  to  Paris  as  hostages.  Guy  Aylmer  went  with 
her.  Paris  was  turbulent.  Soon  the  guild  of  the  butchers,  adopting 
white  hoods  as  their  uniform,  seized  the  city,  and  besieged  the  house 
where  our  hero  and  his  charges  lived.  After  desperate  fighting,  the 
white  hoods  were  beaten  and  our  hero  and  his  charges  escaped  from 
the  city,  and  from  France. 

WITH  COCHRANE  THE  DAUNTLESS 

A  Tale  of  the  Exploits  of  Lord  Cochrane  in  South  American 
Waters.  With  12  full-page  Illustrations  by  W.  H. 
MARGETSON.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  f  1.50. 

The  hero  of  this  story  accompanies  Cochrane  as  midshipman,  and 
serves  in  the  war  between  Chili  and  Peru.  He  has  many  exciting 
adventures  in  battles  by  sea  and  land,  is  taken  prisoner  and  condemned 
to  death  by  the  Inquisition,  but  escapes  by  a  long  and  thrilling  flight 
across  South  America  and  down  the  Amazon. 

ON  THE  IRRAWADDY 

A  Story  of  the  First  Burmese  War.  With  8  full  page  Illus- 
trations by  W.  H.  OVEREND.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges, 
$1.50. 

The  hero,  having  an  uncle,  a  trader  on  the  Indian  and  Burmese 
rivers,  goes  out  to  join  him.  Soon  after,  war  is  declared  by  Burmah 
against  England  and  he  is  drawn  into  it.  He  has  many  experiences 
and  narrow  escapes  in  battles  and  in  scouting.  With  half-a-dozen 
men  he  rescues  his  cousin  who  had  been  taken  prisoner,  and  in  the 
flight  they  are  besieged  in  an  old,  ruined  temple. 


BOOKS  FOR    TO  UNO   PEOPLE 


BY  G.  A.  HENTY 

"  Boys  like  stirring  adventures,  and  Mr.  Henty  is  a  master  of  this 
method  of  composition." — New  York  Tunes. 


THROUGH   RUSSIAN  SNOWS 

A  Story  of  Napoleon's  Retreat  from  Moscow.  With  8  full- 
page  Illustrations  by  W.  H.  OVEREND  and  3  Maps.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero,  Julian  Wyatt,  after  several  adventures  with  smugglers,  by 
whom  he  is  handed  over  a  prisoner  to  the  French,  regains  his  freedom 
and  joins  Napoleon's  army  in  the  Russian  campaign.  When  the  terrible 
retreat  begins,  Julian  finds  himself  in  the  rearguard  of  the  French  army, 
fighting  desperately.  Ultimately  he  escapes  out  of  the  general  disaster, 
and  returns  to  England. 

A  KNIGHT   OF    THE  WHITE  CROSS 

A  Tale  of  the  Siege  of  Rhodes.  With  12  full  page  Illustra- 
tions by  RALPH  PEACOCK,  and  a  Plan.  Crown  8vo,  olivine 
edges,  $1.50. 

Gervaise  Tresham,  the  hero  of  this  story,  joins  the  Order  of  the 
Knights  of  St.  John,  and  proceeds  to  the  stronghold  of  Rhodes.  Sub- 
sequently he  is  appointed  commander  of  a  war-galley,  and  in  his  first 
voyage  destroys  a  fleet  of  Moorish  corsairs.  During  one  of  his  cruises 
the  young  knight  is  attacked  on  shore,  captured  after  a  desperate 
struggle,  and  sold  into  slavery  in  Tripoli.  He  succeeds  in  escaping,  and 
returns  to  Rhodes  in  time  to  take  part  in  the  defense  of  that  fortress. 

THE   TIGER   OF   MYSORE 

A  Story  of  the  War  with  Tippoo  Saib.  With  12  full-page 
Illustrations  by  W.  H.  MARGETSON,  and  a  Map.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

Dick  Holland,  whose  father  is  supposed  to  be  a  captive  of  Tippoo 
Saib,  goes  to  India  to  help  him  to  escape.  He  joins  the  army  under 
Lord  Cornwallis,  and  takes  part  in  the  campaign  againt  Tippoo. 
Afterwards  he  assumes  a  disguise,  enters  Seringapatam,  and  at  last 
he  discovers  his  father  in  the  great  stronghold  of  Savandroog.  The 
hazardous  rescue  is  at  length  accomplished,  and  the  young  fellow's 
dangerous  mission  is  done. 

IN  THE  HEART  OF  THE  ROCKIES 

A  Story  of  Adventure  in  Colorado.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  G.  C.  HINDLEY.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero,  Tom  Wade,  goes  to  seek  his  uncle  in  Colorado,  who  is  a 
hunter  and  gold-digger,  and  he  is  discovered,  after  many  dangers,  out 
on  the  Plains  with  some  comrades.  Going  in  quest  of  a  gold  mine,  the 
little  band  is  spied  by  Indians,  chased  across  the  Bad  Lands,  and 
•overwhelmed  by  a  snowstorm  in  the  mountains. 


BOOKS  FOR    YOUNG   PEOPLE 


BY  Q,  A.  HENTY 

"  Mr.  Henty  is  one  of  the  best  story-tellers  for  young  people." 

— Spectator. 


WHEN   LONDON   BURNED 

A  Story  of  the  Plague  and  the  Fire.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
12  full-page  Illustrations  by  J.  FINNEMORE.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero  of  this  story  was  the  son  of  a  nobleman  who  had  lost  his 
estates  durifag  the  troublous  times  of  the  Commonwealth.  During  the 
Great  Plague  and  the  Great  Fire,  Cyril  was  prominent  among  those 
who  brought  help  to  the  panic-stricken  inhabitants. 

WULF  THE  SAXON 

A  Story  of  the  Norman  Conquest.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
12  full-page  Illustrations  by  RALPH  PEACOCK.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero  is  a  young  thane  who  wins  the  favor  of  Earl  Harold  and 
becomes  one  of  his  retinue.  When  Harold  becomes  King  of  England 
Wulf  assists  iu  the  Welsh  wars,  and  takes  part  against  the  Norsemen 
at  the  Battle  of  Stamford  Bridge.  When  William  of  Normandy  in- 
vades England,  Wulf  is  with  the  English  host  at  Hastings,  and  stands 
by  his  king  to  the  last  in  the  mighty  struggle. 

ST.  BARTHOLOMEW'S  EVE 

A  Tale  of  the  Huguenot  Wars.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  12 
full-page  Illustrations  by  H.  J.  DRAPER,  and  a  Map. 
Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero,  Philip  Fletcher,  has  a  French  connection  on  his  mother's 
side.  This  induces  him  to  cross  the  Channel  in  order  to  take  a  share 
in  the  Huguenot  wars.  Naturally  he  sides  with  the  Protestants,  dis- 
tinguishes himself  in  various  battles,  and  receives  rapid  promotion  for 
the  zeal  and  daring  with  which  he  carries  out  several  secret  missions. 

THROUGH  THE  SIKH  WAR 

A  Tale  of  the  Conquest  of  the  Punjaub.  By  G.  A.  HENTY. 
With  12  full-page  illustrations  by  HAL  HURST,  and  a 
Map.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

Percy  Groves,  a  spirited  English  lad,  joins  his  uncle  in  the  Punjaub, 
where  the  natives  are  in  a  state  of  revolt.  Percy  joins  the  British 
force  as  a  volunteer,  and  takes  a  distinguished  share  in  the  famous 
battles  of  the  Punjaub. 


BY  G. A.  HENTY 

<l  The  brightest  of  the  living  writers  whose  office  it  is  to  enchant  the 
boys. — Christian  Leader. 


A  JACOBITE  EXILE 

Being  the  Adventures  of  a  Young  Englishman  in  the  Service 
of  Charles  XII.  of  Sweden.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  8 
full-page  Illustrations  by  PAUL  HARDY,  and  a  Map.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edget,  $1.50. 

Sir  Marmaduke  Carstairs,  a  Jacobite,  is  the.victim  of  a  conspiracy,  and 
he  is  denounced  as  a  plotter  against  the  life  of  King  William.  He  flies 
to  Sweden,  accompanied  by  his  sen  Charlie.  This  youth  joins  the 
foreign  legion  under  Charles  XII.,  and  takes  a  distinguished  part  in 
several  famous  campaigns  against  the  Russians  and  Poles. 

CONDEMNED  AS  A  NIHILIST 

A  Story  of  Escape  from  Siberia.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  8 
full-page  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero  of  this  etory  is  an  English  boy  resident  in  St.  Petersburg. 
Through  two  student  friends  he  becomes  innocently  involved  in 
various  political  plots,  resulting  in  his  seizure  by  the  Russian  p*olice 
and  his  exile  to  Siberia.  He  ultimately  escapes,  and,  after  many  ex- 
citing adventures,  he  reaches  Norway,  and  thence  home,  after  a 
perilous  journey  which  lasts  nearly  two  years. 

BERIC  THE  BRITON 

A  Story  of  the  Roman  Invasion.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
12  full-page  Illustrations  by  W.  PARKINSON.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

This  story  deals  with  the  invasion  of  Britain  by  the  Roman  legionaries. 
Beric,  who  is  a  boy-chief  of  a  British  tribe,  takes  a  prominent  part  in 
the  insurrection  under  Boadicea ;  and  after  the  defeat  of  that  heroic 
queen  (in  A.  D.  62)  he  continues  the  struggle  in  the  fen-country. 
Ultimately  Beric  is  defeated  and  carried  captive  to  Rome,  where  he  is 
trained  in  the  exercise  of  arms  in  a  school  of  gladiators.  At  length  he 
returns  to  Britain,  where  he  becomes  ruler  of  his  own  people. 

IN  GREEK  WATERS 

A  Story  of  the  Grecian  War  of  Independence  (1821-1827).  By 
G.  A.  HENTY.  With  12  full-page  Illustrations  by  W.  S. 
STAGEY,  and  a  Map.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

Deals  with  the  revolt  of  the  Greeks  in  1821  against  Turkish  oppres- 
sion. Mr.  Beveridge  and  his  son  Horace  fit  out  a  privateer,  load  it 
with  military  stores,  and  set  sail  for  Greece.  They  rescue  the  Chris- 
tians, relieve  the  captive  Greeks,  and  fight  the  Turkish  war  vessels. 


BOOKS  FOR    TO  UNO   PEOPLE 


BY  G. A.  HENTY 

"  No  living  writer  of  books  for  boys  writes  to  better  purpose  than 
Mr.  G.  A.  Henty."— Philadelphia.  Press. 


THE  DASH  FOR  KHARTOUM 

A  Tale  of  the  Nile  Expedition.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  Ifr 
full-page  Illustrations  by  JOHN  SCHONBERG  and  J.  NASH. 
Crown  8vo,  oliviue  edges,  $1.50. 

In  the  record  of  recent  British  history  there  is  no  more  captivating 
page  for  boys  than  the  story  of  the  Nile  campaign,  and  the  attempt  to 
rescue  General  Gordon.  For,  in  the  difficulties  which  the  expedition 
encountered,  in  the  perils  which  it  overpassed,  and  in  its  final  tragic 
disappointments,  are  found  all  the  excitements  of  romance,  as  well  as 
the  fascination  which  belongs  to  real  events. 

REDSKIN  AND  COW-BOY 

A  Tale  of  the  Western  Plains.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  13 
full-page  Illustrations  by  ALFRED  PEARSE.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  central  interest  of  this  story  is  found  in  the  many  adventures  of 
an  English  lad,  who  seeks  employment  as  a  cow-boy  on  a  cattle  ranch. 
His  experiences  during  a  "  round-up  "  present  in  picturesque  form  the 
toilsome,  exciting,  adventurous  life  of  a  cow-boy  ;  while  the  perils  of  a 
•''ontier  settlement  are  vividly  set  forth  in  an  Indian  raid. 


HELD  FAST  FOR  ENGLAND 

A  Tale  of  the  Siege  of  Gibraltar.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
8  fall-page  Illustrations  by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

This  story  deals  with  one  of  the  most  memorable  sieges  in  history — 
the  siege  of  Gibraltar  in  1779-83  by  the  united  forces  of  France  and 
Spain.  With  land  forces,  fleets,  and  floating  batteries,  the  combined 
resources  of  two  great  nations,  this  grim  fortress  was  vainly  besieged 
and  bombarded.  The  hero  of  the  tale,  an  English  lad  resident  in 
Gibraltar,  takes  a  brave  and  worthy  part  in  the  long  defence,  and  it  is 
through  his  varied  experiences  that  we  learn  with  what  bravery,  re- 
source, and  tenacity  the  Rock  was  held  for  England. 


NOTE.— For  a  list  of  Henty  Books  at  popular  prices,  see  the 
following  page. 


BOOKS  FOB    TO  UNO   PEOPLE 


BY    G.   A,    HENTY 

The  following   copyrighted  Henty 
are  also  issued  in  a  cheap  edition 


A  MARCH  ON  LONDON 

WITH  MOORE  AT  CORUNNA 

AT  AGINCOURT 

COCHRANE  THE  DAUNTLESS 

ON  THE  IRRAWADDY 

THROUGH  RUSSIAN  SNOWS 

A  KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

THE  TIGER  OF  MYSORE 

IN  THE  HEART  OF  THE  ROCKIES 

WHEN  LONDON  BURNED 

WULF  THE  SAXON 

ST.  BARTHOLOMEW'S  EVE  . 

THROUGH  THE  SIKH  WAR 

A  JACOBITE  EXILE 

CONDEMNED  AS  A     NIHILIST 

BERIC  THE  BRITON 

IN  GREEK  WATERS 

THE  DASH  FOR  KHARTOUM 

REDSKIN  AND  COW-BOY 

HELD  FAST  FOR  ENGLAND 

*   *   * 

These  bool^s  are  fully  described  in  the 
pages  preceding  this. 


A  List  of  Books     * 
x      for  Young  People 

...  »r ... 
KIRK     MUNROE 


A    SON    OF    SATSUMA 
Or.  With  Perry  in  Japan 

BY  KIRK  MUNROE 

With  twelve  Illustrations  by  HARRY  C.  EDWARDS.    $1.00  net. 

THIS  absorbing  story  for  boys  deals  with  one  of  the  most  in. 
teresting  episodes  in  our  National  history.  From  the 
beginning  Japan  has  been  a  land  of  mystery.  Foreigners  were 
permitted  to  land  only  at  certain  points  on  her  shores  and  nothing 
whatever  was  known  of  her  civilization  and  history,  her  romance 
and  magnificence,  her  wealth  and  art.  It  was  Commodore  Perry 
who  opened  her  gates  to  the  world,  thus  solving  the  mystery  of 
the  ages,  and,  in  this  thrilling  story  of  an  American  boy  in 
Japan  at  that  period,  the  spirit  as  well  as  the  history  of  this  great 
achievement  is  ably  set  forth. 

MIDSHIPMAN  STUART 

Or,  the  Last  Cruise  of  the  Essex.  A  Tale  of  the  "War  of  1812. 
Illustrated.  12mo,  $1.25. 

This  is  an  absorbing  story  of  life  in  the  American  Navy  during 
the  stirring  times  of  our  war  of  1812.  The  very  spirit  of  the 
period  is  in  its  pages,  and  many  of  the  adventures  of  the  Essex 
are  studied  from  history. 

IN  PIRATE  WATERS 

A  Tale  of  the  American  Navy.     Illustrated   by   I.  W.  TABEB. 
12mo,  $1.25. 

The  hero  of  the  story  becomes  a  midshipman  in  the  navy  mst  at  the 
time  of  the  war  with  Tripoli.  His  own  wild  adventures  among  the 
Turks  and  his  love  romance  are  thoroughly  interwoven  with  the  stri- 
ring  history  of  that  tune. 


BOOKS  FOR    YOU  NO   PEOPLE 


BY  KIRK  MUNROE 
THE  "WHITE  CONQUERORS"  SERIES 

WITH    CROCKETT   AND   BOWIE 

Or,  Fighting  for  the  Lone  Star  Flag.  A  Tale  of  Texas.  With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  VICTOR  PERARD.  Crown  8vo, 
$1.25. 

The  story  is  of  the  Texas  revolution  in  1835,  when  American  Texans 
under  Sam  Houston,  Bowie,  Crockett  and  Travis,  fought  for  relief 
from  the  intolerable  tyranny  of  the  Mexican  Santa  Ana.  The  hero, 
Rex  Hardin,  son  of  a  Texan  ranchman  and  graduate  of  an  American 
military  school,  takes  a  prominent  part  in  the  heroic  defense  of  the 
Alamo,  and  the  final  triumph  at  San  Jacinto. 

THROUGH    SWAMP    AND   GLADE 

A  Tale  of  the  Seminole  War.  By  KIRK  MUNROE.  With  8  full- 
page  Illustrations  by  V.  PERARD.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

Coacoochee,  the  hero  of  the  story,  is  the  son  of  Philip  the  chieftain 
of  the  Seminoles.  He  grows  up  to  lead  his  tribe  in  the  long  struggle 
which  resulted  in  the  Indians  being  driven  from  the  north  of  Florida 
down  to  the  distant  southern  wilderness. 

AT  WAR  WITH   PONTIAC 

Or,  the  Totem  of  the  Bear.  A  Tale  of  Redcoat  and  Redskin, 
By  KIRK  MUNROE.  With  8  full -page  Illustrations  by  J. 
FINNEMORE.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

A  story  when  the  shores  of  Lake  Erie  were  held  by  hostile  Indians. 
The  hero,  Donald  Hester,  goes  in  search  of  his  sister  Edith,  who  has 
been  captured  by  the  Indians.  Strange  and  terrible  are  his  experi- 
ences ;  for  he  is  wounded,  taken  prisoner,  condemned  to  be  burned,  but 
contrives  to  escape.  In  the  end  all  things  terminate  happily. 

THE  WHITE   CONQUERORS 

A  Tale  of  Toltec  and  Aztec.  By  KIRK  MUNROE.  With  8  full- 
page  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

This  story  deals  with  the  Conquest  of  Mexico  by  Cortez  and  his 
Spaniards,  the  "  White  Conquerors,"  who,  after  mamy  deeds  of  valor, 
pushed  their  way  into  the  great  Aztec  kingdom  and  established  their 
power  in  the  wondrous  city  where  Montezuma  reigned  in  splendor. 

CHARLES  SCRIBNE,R'S  SONS 
153-7  Fifth  Avenue  New  YorK 


A  LIST  OF  NE,W  BOOKS 

FOK. 

YOUNG    PEOPLE 


FALL    OF    1902 

CHARLES   SCRIBNER'S    SONS 
NEW    YORK 

*  *  * 
THE   BOOK   OF  JOYOUS   CHILDREN 

BY  JAMES  WHITCOMB  RILEY 

Profusely  Illustrated. 

The  sweetness,  the  grace,  the  laughter  and  the  tenderness  of  Mr. 
Riley's  best  verse  are  found  to  the  full  in  this  book  of  delightful  poems 
for  and  about  children.  The  illustrations  have  been  made  under  the 
author's  supervision,  and  portray  the  scenes  and  the  little  heroes  and 
heroines  of  the  poems  with  artistic  fidelity. 

IN  THE  WASP'S  NEST 

The  Story  of  a  Sea  Waif.    By  CYRUS  TOWNSEND  BRADY.    Illus- 
trated.   $1.50  net.     (Postage,  16  cents.) 

A  vigorous  story  of  the  War  of  1812.  The  hero,  a  midshipman, 
serves  gallantly  aboard  two  famous  American  ships,  each  bearing  the 
name  of  Wasp,  having  many  adventures  of  storm,  battle  and  capture. 
The  hero  was  picked  up  in  an  open  boat  when  a  baby  by  the  crew  of  the 
U.  S.  S.  Boston  and  adopted  by  the  Captain.  The  story  has  the  real 
spirit  of  tb.3  American  Navy. 

A  CAPTURED  SANTA  CLAUS 

BY  THOMAS  NELSON  PAGE 

Illustrated  in  Colors. 

This  exouisite  story  of  childhood  is  one  of  the  most  delicate  that 
even  Mr.  Page  has  written.  It  is  an  episode  of  the  Civil  War  in  which 
children  are  the  little  heroes.  The  period  is  the  Christmas  time,  and 
the  scene  is  between  the  lines  of  the  Union  and  Confederate  Armies. 


BOOKS  FOR    YOUNG   PEOPLE 


JEB  HUTTON,  A  GEORGIA  BOY 

By  JAMES  B.  CONNOLLY.  Illustrated.  $1.20  net.  (Postage, 
13  cents.) 

A  thoroughly  interesting  and  breezy  tale  of  boy-life  along  the 
Savannah  River  by  a  writer  who  knows  boys,  and  who  has  succeeded 
in  making  of  the  adventures  of  Jeb  and  his  friends  a  story  that  will 
keep  his  young  readers  absorbed  to  the  last  page. 

KING  MOMBO 

By  PAUL  Du  CHAILLU.  Author  of  "The  World  of  the  Great 
Forest,"  etc.  With  24  illustrations.  $1.50  net.  (Postage, 
16  cents.) 

The  scene  is  the  great  African  forest.  It  is  a  book  of  interesting 
experiences  with  native  tribes,  and  thrilling  and  perilous  adventures  in 
hunting  elephants,  crocodiles,  gorillas  and  other  fierce  creatures 
among  which  this  famous  explorer  lived  so  long. 

A  NEW  BOOK  FOR  GIRLS 

By  LIN  A  BEARD  and  ADELIA  B.  BEARD.  Authors  of  "  The 
American  Girl's  Handy  Book."  Profusely  Illustrated. 

An  admirable  collection  of  entirely  new  and  original  indoor  and  out- 
door pastimes  for  American  girls,  each  fully  and  interestingly  de- 
scribed and  explained,  and  all  designed  to  stimulate  the  taste  and 
ingenuity  at  the  same  time  that  they  entertain. 

SEA   FIGHTERS    FROM   DRAKE   TO 
FARRAGUT 

By  JESSIE  PEABODY  FROTHINGHAM.  Illustrations  by  REUTER- 
DAHL.  $1.20  net.  (Postage,  14  cents.) 

Drake,  Tromp,  De  Reuter,  Tourville,  Suffren,  Paul  Jones,  Nelson 
and  Farragut  are  the  naval  heroes  here  pictured,  and  each  is  shown  in 
some  great  episode  which  illustrates  his  personality  and  heroism.  The 
book  is  full  of  the  very  spirit  of  daring  and  adventurous  achievement. 

BOB  AND  HIS  GUN 

By  WILLIAM  ALEXANDER  LINN.     With  8  Illustrations. 

The  adventures  of  a  boy  with  a  gun  under  the  instruction  of  his 
cousin,  an  accomplished  sportsman.  The  book's  aim  is  to  interest 
boys  in  hunting  in  the  spirit  of  true  sport  and  to  instruct  in  the  ways 
of  game  birds  and  animals. 


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